Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) Stock Gets Price Target Cut from Citigroup

Key Points

• Citigroup cut its price target on Telephone and Data Systems to $44 from $47 but maintained a Buy rating; the new target implies about 40% upside from the cited share price.
• Analyst views are mixed: MarketBeat data showed a consensus Hold rating and an average target of $46, with two Buy and three Hold ratings.
• TDS reported quarterly EPS of $0.26, beating the $0.11 estimate, while revenue of $306.69 million fell short of forecasts and declined 0.6% year over year.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS - Get Free Report) had its target price dropped by Citigroup from $47.00 to $44.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the Wireless communications provider's stock. Citigroup's price target would suggest a potential upside of 39.95% from the company's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on TDS. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Telephone and Data Systems from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Telephone and Data Systems from $51.00 to $48.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Telephone and Data Systems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $46.00.

Telephone and Data Systems Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of Telephone and Data Systems stock traded up $0.71 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $31.44. The stock had a trading volume of 963,269 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,199,818. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.69 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a current ratio of 4.01, a quick ratio of 4.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Telephone and Data Systems has a 1 year low of $30.46 and a 1 year high of $49.12.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 6th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.15. Telephone and Data Systems had a return on equity of 12.48% and a net margin of 43.41%. The business had revenue of $306.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $309.14 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.33 EPS. The company's revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Telephone and Data Systems will post -0.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Telephone and Data Systems

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TDS. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Telephone and Data Systems by 29.2% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,085 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 245 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in Telephone and Data Systems by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 74,691 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $3,144,000 after buying an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 16.3% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,730 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 2.2% during the third quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 19,601 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $665,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 17.1% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 3,307 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $139,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. 80.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Telephone and Data Systems

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (TDS) is a U.S. telecommunications company founded in 1969. Its TDS Telecom business provides broadband, video and voice services to residential and business customers, using fiber and other wired networks as well as fixed wireless in some areas. TDS Telecom serves communities across multiple U.S. states, including smaller and rural markets. Its offerings include high-speed internet access, television service and business communications solutions. TDS has also operated wireless telecommunications businesses during its history.

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