Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. $TDS Stock Holdings Lifted by Carronade Capital Management LP

Key Points

• Carronade Capital Management LP increased its stake in Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. by 48.2%, owning 2,730,517 shares, making TDS approximately 6.2% of its investment portfolio.
• Telephone and Data Systems recently reported earnings of ($0.05) per share, which was lower than the expected ($0.01), while revenue was $1.19 billion, slightly above forecasts.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.04 per share, with an expected annualized payout of $0.16, representing a dividend yield of 0.4%.

Carronade Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS - Free Report) by 48.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,730,517 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock after acquiring an additional 888,108 shares during the quarter. Telephone and Data Systems accounts for approximately 6.2% of Carronade Capital Management LP's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Carronade Capital Management LP owned about 2.40% of Telephone and Data Systems worth $105,780,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 25.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 42,165 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $1,633,000 after acquiring an additional 8,640 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 4.7% during the first quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 30,073 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $1,165,000 after purchasing an additional 1,345 shares during the period. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 5.5% during the first quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 11,596 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $449,000 after purchasing an additional 606 shares during the period. GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 58.8% during the first quarter. GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. now owns 192,178 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $7,445,000 after purchasing an additional 71,128 shares during the period. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 0.8% during the first quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 1,915,425 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $74,204,000 after purchasing an additional 15,658 shares during the period. 80.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Vicki L. Villacrez sold 73,878 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.88, for a total transaction of $2,872,376.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 81,035 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,150,640.80. This represents a 47.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Anita J. Kroll sold 29,047 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.02, for a total value of $1,133,413.94. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 19,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $776,185.84. The trade was a 59.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 276,650 shares of company stock worth $10,690,789 in the last 90 days. 14.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Telephone and Data Systems Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of TDS traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $39.48. The company had a trading volume of 976,273 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,074,562. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 1.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $38.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.50. Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. has a 52 week low of $21.81 and a 52 week high of $42.74. The company has a market capitalization of $4.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -40.70 and a beta of 0.48.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The Wireless communications provider reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.04). Telephone and Data Systems had a negative net margin of 0.85% and a positive return on equity of 0.92%. The company had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.13) earnings per share. Telephone and Data Systems's quarterly revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. will post -0.31 EPS for the current year.

Telephone and Data Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Telephone and Data Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -16.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Telephone and Data Systems from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Telephone and Data Systems from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Raymond James Financial upped their price objective on shares of Telephone and Data Systems from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Telephone and Data Systems from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Telephone and Data Systems presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $52.00.

About Telephone and Data Systems

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc, a telecommunications company, provides communications services in the United States. It operates through two segments: UScellular and TDS Telecom. The company offers wireless solutions to consumers, and business and government customers, including a suite of connected Internet of things (IoT) solutions, and software applications for monitor and control, business automation/operations, communication, fleet and asset management, smart water solutions, private cellular networks and custom, and end-to-end IoT solutions; wireless priority services and quality priority and preemption options; smartphones and other handsets, tablets, wearables, mobile hotspots, fixed wireless home internet, and IoT devices; and accessories, such as cases, screen protectors, chargers, and memory cards, as well as consumer electronics, including audio, home automation and networking products.