Mackay Shields LLC Sells 174,598 Shares of Vodafone Group PLC $VOD

Key Points

• Mackay Shields LLC reduced its stake in Vodafone Group PLC by 22.8%, selling 174,598 shares during the second quarter, leaving it with a total of 591,424 shares valued at approximately $6.3 million.
• Notable changes among other hedge funds included V Square Quantitative Management and Atwood & Palmer Inc. both purchasing new stakes in Vodafone, while Hazlett Burt & Watson significantly increased their holdings by 65.5%.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Vodafone's stock, with Weiss Ratings giving it a "sell" rating, while Zacks Research upgraded it to "hold," reflecting a mixed outlook for investors.

Mackay Shields LLC lessened its stake in Vodafone Group PLC (NASDAQ:VOD - Free Report) by 22.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 591,424 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 174,598 shares during the quarter. Mackay Shields LLC's holdings in Vodafone Group were worth $6,305,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VOD. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vodafone Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vodafone Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vodafone Group by 65.5% in the 1st quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 3,159 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250 shares during the period. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vodafone Group during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vodafone Group by 116,833.3% during the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 3,508 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 3,505 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 7.84% of the company's stock.

Vodafone Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ VOD opened at $11.30 on Friday. Vodafone Group PLC has a 1 year low of $8.00 and a 1 year high of $12.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.11 billion, a PE ratio of 9.91, a P/E/G ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.62. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $11.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.54.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on VOD. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Vodafone Group in a research note on Wednesday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Vodafone Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Vodafone Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. They set an "equal weight" rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Vodafone Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $136.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Vodafone Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $136.00.

Vodafone Group Profile

Vodafone Group Public Limited Company provides telecommunication services in Europe and internationally. It offers mobile connectivity services comprising end-to-end services for mobile voice and data, messaging, device management, BYOx, and telecoms management, as well as professional and consulting services; and fixed line connectivity, such as fixed voice and data, broadband, software-defined networks, managed WAN, LAN, ethernet, and satellite; and financial services, as well as business and merchant services.

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