Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Takes $404,000 Position in Vodafone Group PLC $VOD

Key Points

• Nations Financial Group Inc. has acquired a new stake in Vodafone Group PLC, purchasing 43,066 shares valued at approximately $404,000 during the first quarter.
• Vodafone Group cut its dividend, paying out $0.2355 per share on August 1, leading to a dividend yield of 660.0% and a dividend payout ratio of 42.98%.
• The stock rating for Vodafone Group varies among analysts, with an average rating of "Hold" and a price target of $136, despite several downgrades from analysts.

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV purchased a new stake in Vodafone Group PLC (NASDAQ:VOD - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 43,066 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $404,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Vodafone Group by 26.4% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,661,165 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $15,565,000 after buying an additional 346,458 shares during the period. Fox Run Management L.L.C. increased its holdings in Vodafone Group by 172.9% in the 1st quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 27,760 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $260,000 after buying an additional 17,588 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its holdings in Vodafone Group by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 92,068 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $863,000 after buying an additional 1,318 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Vodafone Group in the 1st quarter valued at $138,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Vodafone Group by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 206,525 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,935,000 after purchasing an additional 7,152 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 7.84% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Vodafone Group to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Vodafone Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $136.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vodafone Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Vodafone Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They set an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Vodafone Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $136.00.

Vodafone Group Trading Up 0.5%

NASDAQ:VOD traded up $0.06 on Friday, hitting $11.92. 4,509,103 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,837,077. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.62. Vodafone Group PLC has a 52 week low of $8.00 and a 52 week high of $11.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.26. The company's 50-day moving average price is $11.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.89.

About Vodafone Group

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.