ING Groep NV Trims Stock Holdings in T-Mobile US, Inc. $TMUS

Key Points

• ING Groep NV sharply reduced its T-Mobile US stake in the fourth quarter, cutting holdings by 96.8% and selling 209,520 shares. After the sale, it held 6,951 shares worth about $1.41 million.
• Institutional investors remain heavily invested in T-Mobile, with Vanguard, State Street, Capital International Investors, Wellington Management, and Invesco all reporting sizable positions. Overall, hedge funds and other institutions own 42.49% of the company.
• T-Mobile posted stronger-than-expected quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.02 per share. Analysts remain generally positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $260.48.

ING Groep NV decreased its holdings in T-Mobile US, Inc. (NASDAQ:TMUS - Free Report) by 96.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,951 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock after selling 209,520 shares during the period. ING Groep NV's holdings in T-Mobile US were worth $1,411,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of T-Mobile US by 1.5% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,797,074 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $10,244,764,000 after purchasing an additional 636,192 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of T-Mobile US by 4.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,234,085 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $5,801,155,000 after purchasing an additional 1,092,769 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of T-Mobile US by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,847,697 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $3,014,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,121,409 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of T-Mobile US by 47.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,461,669 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $3,222,454,000 after purchasing an additional 4,335,368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of T-Mobile US by 6.1% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,903,104 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $1,891,845,000 after purchasing an additional 453,096 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.49% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at T-Mobile US

In related news, insider Andre Almeida bought 5,097 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $196.18 per share, for a total transaction of $999,929.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 44,850 shares in the company, valued at $8,798,673. This trade represents a 12.82% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Jon Freier sold 4,799 shares of T-Mobile US stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total transaction of $911,810.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 217,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $41,261,920. The trade was a 2.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.32% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Moffett Nathanson upgraded shares of T-Mobile US from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $254.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Arete Research lifted their target price on shares of T-Mobile US from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of T-Mobile US in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of T-Mobile US from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $260.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of T-Mobile US from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, T-Mobile US has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $260.48.

T-Mobile US Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:TMUS opened at $179.46 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $192.36 and a 200 day moving average of $200.11. The stock has a market cap of $194.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.31. T-Mobile US, Inc. has a 12 month low of $174.02 and a 12 month high of $261.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58.

T-Mobile US (NASDAQ:TMUS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The Wireless communications provider reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $23.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.98 billion. T-Mobile US had a net margin of 11.65% and a return on equity of 19.47%. T-Mobile US's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.58 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that T-Mobile US, Inc. will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

T-Mobile US Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. T-Mobile US's payout ratio is currently 43.40%.

T-Mobile US Profile

T-Mobile US is a national wireless carrier that provides mobile voice, messaging and data services to consumers, businesses and wholesale customers across the United States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The company operates a nationwide mobile network and offers device sales, equipment financing and support services through retail stores, online channels and distribution partners. T-Mobile positions its products around bundled service plans, device offerings and value-added features for both individual and enterprise customers.

Product offerings include postpaid and prepaid wireless plans under the T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile brands, as well as connectivity solutions for small and large businesses.

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