Chunghwa Telecom (NYSE:CHT) Shares Gap Down - What's Next?

Shares of Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. (NYSE:CHT - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $46.95, but opened at $45.57. Chunghwa Telecom shares last traded at $45.44, with a volume of 11,672 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Chunghwa Telecom from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th.

Chunghwa Telecom Stock Down 3.1%

The company has a market cap of $35.30 billion, a PE ratio of 30.54 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $44.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.59.

Chunghwa Telecom (NYSE:CHT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.38. Chunghwa Telecom had a net margin of 16.29% and a return on equity of 9.63%. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $56.11 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. will post 1.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chunghwa Telecom Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be issued a $1.6695 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. This is an increase from Chunghwa Telecom's previous annual dividend of $1.47. Chunghwa Telecom's dividend payout ratio is 87.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chunghwa Telecom

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Chunghwa Telecom by 15.0% during the first quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,116,747 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $43,788,000 after buying an additional 145,984 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Chunghwa Telecom by 420.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 676,302 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $25,463,000 after buying an additional 546,436 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its stake in shares of Chunghwa Telecom by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 650,358 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $24,662,000 after buying an additional 14,911 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Chunghwa Telecom by 142.3% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 465,571 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $18,250,000 after buying an additional 273,449 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Chunghwa Telecom by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 424,763 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,003,000 after buying an additional 3,416 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.11% of the company's stock.

Chunghwa Telecom Company Profile

Chunghwa Telecom Co, Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunication services in Taiwan and internationally. It operates through Consumer Business, Enterprise Business, International Business, and Others segments. The company offers local, domestic long distance, and international long distance fixed-line telephone services; mobile services such as prepaid and postpaid plans; broadband plans; and internet and data services.