AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) Stake Decreased by Poplar Forest Capital LLC

Poplar Forest Capital LLC reduced its holdings in AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - Free Report) by 5.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,127,058 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 71,152 shares during the quarter. AT&T accounts for 5.7% of Poplar Forest Capital LLC's holdings, making the stock its biggest position. Poplar Forest Capital LLC's holdings in AT&T were worth $31,873,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Hager Investment Management Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of AT&T by 182.1% in the 1st quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC now owns 993 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares during the period. Core Alternative Capital grew its position in AT&T by 125.4% during the first quarter. Core Alternative Capital now owns 1,021 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares in the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in AT&T during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AT&T during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in AT&T during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. 57.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AT&T Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of AT&T stock traded up $0.10 during trading on Friday, reaching $28.02. 33,981,327 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 32,249,414. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.65. AT&T Inc. has a 1-year low of $18.64 and a 1-year high of $29.19. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $27.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.58 billion, a PE ratio of 15.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.42.

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

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.2775 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $1.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.96%. AT&T's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

T has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of AT&T in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. HSBC lowered shares of AT&T from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $30.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday. Hsbc Global Res cut AT&T from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday. Bank of America assumed coverage on AT&T in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on AT&T from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $29.66.

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.