Hawk Ridge Capital Management LP Purchases New Position in Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. $TDS

Key Points

• Hawk Ridge Capital Management LP has invested approximately $19.14 million in Telephone and Data Systems, acquiring 494,085 shares, which represents about 0.43% of the company's total shares.
• Telephone and Data Systems reported a loss of $0.05 per share for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations, but had revenue of $1.19 billion, slightly above the estimated $1.17 billion.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.04 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.4%, to be paid on September 30th to shareholders of record as of September 15th.

Hawk Ridge Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 494,085 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock, valued at approximately $19,141,000. Hawk Ridge Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.43% of Telephone and Data Systems at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its position in Telephone and Data Systems by 121.8% in the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 1,342 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 737 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its position in Telephone and Data Systems by 85.6% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 4,092 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $139,000 after acquiring an additional 1,887 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP bought a new stake in Telephone and Data Systems in the first quarter worth about $200,000. Greenleaf Trust bought a new stake in Telephone and Data Systems in the first quarter worth about $202,000. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Telephone and Data Systems in the first quarter worth about $205,000. 80.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Transactions at Telephone and Data Systems

In related news, Director Prudence E. Carlson sold 4,452 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.50, for a total value of $171,402.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 311,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,973,692.50. The trade was a 1.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Joseph R. Hanley sold 68,759 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.16, for a total value of $2,623,843.44. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 60,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,307,649.68. The trade was a 53.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 276,650 shares of company stock worth $10,690,789. 14.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Telephone and Data Systems Stock Down 2.9%

NYSE:TDS traded down $1.14 on Monday, hitting $38.38. 1,374,770 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,076,330. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. has a 1 year low of $21.81 and a 1 year high of $42.74. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $38.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $36.45. The company has a market cap of $4.41 billion, a PE ratio of -39.56 and a beta of 0.48.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The Wireless communications provider reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.13) EPS. The company's revenue was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. will post -0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Telephone and Data Systems Announces Dividend

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

Telephone and Data Systems Profile

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.