AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) Holdings Decreased by Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC

Key Points

• Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC has reduced its stake in AT&T Inc. by 27.9%, now holding 420,531 shares valued at approximately $11.89 million.
• AT&T recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.2775 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 3.8%.
• Analyst ratings for AT&T have become more favorable, with Wall Street Zen upgrading the stock from "hold" to "buy," and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" along with an average target price of $30.21.

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC reduced its stake in shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - Free Report) by 27.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 420,531 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 162,392 shares during the quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in AT&T were worth $11,893,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of T. AllSquare Wealth Management LLC raised its position in AT&T by 7.1% in the first quarter. AllSquare Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,704 shares of the technology company's stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Next Level Private LLC raised its position in AT&T by 0.3% in the first quarter. Next Level Private LLC now owns 113,379 shares of the technology company's stock worth $3,206,000 after acquiring an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC raised its position in AT&T by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 24,161 shares of the technology company's stock worth $550,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. raised its position in AT&T by 9.4% in the first quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 4,617 shares of the technology company's stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its position in AT&T by 0.3% in the first quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 114,324 shares of the technology company's stock worth $3,222,000 after acquiring an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. 57.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

T has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised AT&T from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $31.00 price target (up previously from $30.00) on shares of AT&T in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Williams Trading set a $30.00 price target on AT&T in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on AT&T from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of AT&T in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $30.21.

AT&T Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of AT&T stock opened at $28.89 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $206.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.76. AT&T Inc. has a 52-week low of $19.08 and a 52-week high of $29.19. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.19.

AT&T (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The technology company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $30.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.44 billion. AT&T had a return on equity of 13.36% and a net margin of 10.29%. The firm's revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.51 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that AT&T Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were issued a dividend of $0.2775 per share. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. AT&T's payout ratio is currently 63.07%.

About AT&T

AT&T, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of telecommunications and technology services. It operates through the Communications and Latin America segments. The Communications segment offers wireless, wireline telecom, and broadband services to businesses and consumers located in the US and businesses globally.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding T? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.