L & S Advisors Inc Reduces Position in AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)

Key Points

• L & S Advisors Inc has reduced its position in AT&T Inc. by 8.1%, selling 12,648 shares during the first quarter, and now holds 143,366 shares valued at $4,054,000.
• AT&T reported $0.54 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, with quarterly revenues up 3.4% year-over-year at $30.85 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.2775 per share, representing a 4.0% dividend yield, with a payout ratio of **63.07%**.

L & S Advisors Inc lessened its stake in shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - Free Report) by 8.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 143,366 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 12,648 shares during the period. L & S Advisors Inc's holdings in AT&T were worth $4,054,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of T. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AT&T during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AT&T during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of AT&T during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of AT&T by 182.1% during the 1st quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC now owns 993 shares of the technology company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares during the period. Finally, Core Alternative Capital grew its holdings in shares of AT&T by 125.4% during the 1st quarter. Core Alternative Capital now owns 1,021 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.10% of the company's stock.

AT&T Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE:T opened at $27.76 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.85. The stock has a market cap of $198.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.42. AT&T Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.64 and a 1 year high of $29.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.81.

AT&T (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The technology company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $30.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $30.44 billion. AT&T had a return on equity of 13.36% and a net margin of 10.29%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.51 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that AT&T Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.2775 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $1.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. AT&T's payout ratio is 63.07%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on T shares. TD Securities increased their price target on AT&T from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of AT&T in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on AT&T from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen raised AT&T from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $31.00 target price (up from $30.00) on shares of AT&T in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AT&T presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $29.66.

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.

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