Ethic Inc. Acquires 46,466 Shares of AT&T Inc. $T

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. increased its holdings in AT&T by 4.3% during the second quarter, acquiring an additional 46,466 shares, bringing its total to 1,127,147 shares, valued at $31.65 million.
• AT&T recently reported $0.54 earnings per share for its latest quarter, aligning with analysts' estimates, despite a decrease from $0.60 in the same quarter the previous year.
• The company will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.2775 on November 3rd, providing an annualized dividend yield of 4.5%, with a payout ratio of 63.07%.

Ethic Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - Free Report) by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,127,147 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 46,466 shares during the period. AT&T comprises about 0.6% of Ethic Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in AT&T were worth $31,650,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its holdings in shares of AT&T by 1.5% during the second quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 324,104 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $9,380,000 after acquiring an additional 4,793 shares during the period. Kickstand Ventures LLC. bought a new position in AT&T during the 2nd quarter valued at about $489,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC boosted its position in AT&T by 153.2% in the second quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 22,095 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $625,000 after buying an additional 13,370 shares in the last quarter. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. increased its holdings in shares of AT&T by 1.4% during the second quarter. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. now owns 722,568 shares of the technology company's stock worth $20,910,000 after buying an additional 9,970 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of AT&T by 180.5% in the second quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 114,091 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,302,000 after acquiring an additional 73,417 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.10% of the company's stock.

AT&T Stock Down 4.3%

AT&T stock opened at $24.94 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $28.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. AT&T Inc. has a 1-year low of $21.05 and a 1-year high of $29.79. The company has a market cap of $178.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.42.

AT&T (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The technology company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54. AT&T had a net margin of 10.29% and a return on equity of 13.36%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.60 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that AT&T Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.2775 dividend. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. AT&T's dividend payout ratio is presently 63.07%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

T has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of AT&T in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of AT&T from $31.00 to $29.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on AT&T in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on AT&T from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on shares of AT&T from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $30.65.

AT&T Company Profile

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.

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