Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) Upgraded to Buy at New Street Research

New Street Research upgraded shares of Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on VIV. Bank of America began coverage on Telefonica Brasil in a report on Thursday, December 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $14.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded Telefonica Brasil from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Telefonica Brasil from $12.50 to $15.30 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Telefonica Brasil from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of Telefonica Brasil from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.98.

Telefonica Brasil Stock Performance

VIV opened at $15.92 on Tuesday. Telefonica Brasil has a 52-week low of $8.19 and a 52-week high of $16.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.89 billion, a PE ratio of 22.74, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.00. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $15.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.57.

Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Telefonica Brasil had a return on equity of 9.15% and a net margin of 10.42%.The business had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Telefonica Brasil will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Telefonica Brasil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.4562 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 22nd. Telefonica Brasil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.29%.

Institutional Trading of Telefonica Brasil

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Arax Advisory Partners raised its stake in Telefonica Brasil by 54.4% in the fourth quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 3,773 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 1,330 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in shares of Telefonica Brasil by 337.7% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 4,233 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 3,266 shares during the period. Westfuller Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Telefonica Brasil in the third quarter valued at about $59,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Telefonica Brasil by 214.0% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,766 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 3,248 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Telefonica Brasil in the first quarter valued at about $52,000. Institutional investors own 5.16% of the company’s stock.

About Telefonica Brasil

Telefônica Brasil SA, commonly marketed under the Vivo brand, is one of Brazil’s largest telecommunications providers, offering a broad range of consumer and enterprise communications services. The company’s core activities include mobile voice and data services, fixed-line telephony, broadband internet (including fiber-to-the-home), and pay-TV solutions. It also provides ICT and managed services for business customers, such as cloud, data center, connectivity, Internet of Things (IoT) and security solutions.

Vivo operates a nationwide network across Brazil and serves both individual consumers and corporate clients.