Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) Reaches New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Ericsson shares hit a new 52-week high on Monday, trading as high as $12.28 before closing near $12.28, up from the prior close of $11.88.
• Analysts remain cautious overall: Morgan Stanley initiated coverage with an equal weight rating and a $11 target, while the consensus rating from MarketBeat is “Reduce” with an average price target of $11.00.
• The stock’s recent move comes as institutional investors have been active, with firms like BNP Paribas Financial Markets sharply increasing holdings; institutional ownership stands at 7.99%.

Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $12.28 and last traded at $12.2750, with a volume of 996565 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $11.88.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on ERIC. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Ericsson in a report on Monday, February 9th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $11.00 target price for the company. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Ericsson in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen cut Ericsson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. Finally, Argus raised Ericsson to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $11.00.

Ericsson Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $41.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.73, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $11.53 and a 200 day moving average of $10.52.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ericsson

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ERIC. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Ericsson by 7.5% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 134,891 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $1,049,000 after acquiring an additional 9,362 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in Ericsson in the first quarter valued at about $126,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Ericsson by 0.7% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 250,389 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $2,123,000 after buying an additional 1,658 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in Ericsson during the second quarter worth about $2,735,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Ericsson by 42.9% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,350,029 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $28,408,000 after acquiring an additional 1,005,398 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 7.99% of the company's stock.

About Ericsson

Ericsson AB is a Swedish multinational telecommunications equipment and services company headquartered in Stockholm. Founded in 1876 by Lars Magnus Ericsson, the company designs, develops and sells infrastructure, software and services that enable mobile and fixed-line networks worldwide. Ericsson serves a global customer base that includes mobile network operators, enterprise customers and public-sector organizations across Europe, the Americas, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa.

The company's core activities center on building and modernizing network infrastructure, with a particular focus on radio access networks (RAN), core network software, cloud-native solutions and network management systems.

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