AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) Shares Sold by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its stake in AT&T Inc. by 13.1%, holding 335,714 shares valued at approximately $9.49 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• AT&T reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.54, surpassing analysts' expectations, with revenues of $30.85 billion up 3.4% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.2775 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 4.0%, with a payout ratio of 63.07%.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its position in shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - Free Report) by 13.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 335,714 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 50,621 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in AT&T were worth $9,494,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in T. Hager Investment Management Services LLC increased its holdings in AT&T by 182.1% in the 1st quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC now owns 993 shares of the technology company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 641 shares in the last quarter. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AT&T during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Core Alternative Capital increased its stake in shares of AT&T by 125.4% during the first quarter. Core Alternative Capital now owns 1,021 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares in the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AT&T during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AT&T in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

T has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of AT&T in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. HSBC downgraded shares of AT&T from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $30.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of AT&T in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $32.00 target price on the stock. Cowen restated a "hold" rating on shares of AT&T in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on AT&T from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $29.66.

AT&T Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE:T traded up $0.02 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $28.08. 23,594,470 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 34,716,284. AT&T Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.97 and a fifty-two week high of $29.19. The company has a market capitalization of $200.78 billion, a PE ratio of 15.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.01.

AT&T (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The technology company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.01. The company 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.51 earnings per share. As a group, equities 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th were issued a dividend of $0.2775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. AT&T's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.07%.

AT&T 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.