Cerity Partners LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Telefonica SA (NYSE:TEF)

Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Telefonica SA (NYSE:TEF - Free Report) by 65.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 454,853 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 179,119 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Telefonica were worth $2,120,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Telefonica by 20.3% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 36,154 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $145,000 after buying an additional 6,100 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Telefonica by 38.8% during the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 67,901 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $273,000 after acquiring an additional 18,988 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Telefonica by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,429,565 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,747,000 after acquiring an additional 66,797 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Telefonica by 179.2% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 281,932 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,133,000 after acquiring an additional 180,945 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Telefonica by 576.6% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 13,316 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 11,348 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 1.14% of the company's stock.

Telefonica Stock Performance

NYSE TEF traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $5.40. 695,446 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 491,028. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -14.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. Telefonica SA has a 1 year low of $3.89 and a 1 year high of $5.48. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $5.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $4.74.

Telefonica (NYSE:TEF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The utilities provider reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.08. Telefonica had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a positive return on equity of 9.30%. The company had revenue of $9.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.06 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Telefonica SA will post 0.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Telefonica Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were paid a $0.1703 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. This is a positive change from Telefonica's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.16. This represents a dividend yield of 4.5%. Telefonica's payout ratio is presently -65.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DZ Bank cut shares of Telefonica from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Telefonica to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Telefonica in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Telefonica from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold".

About Telefonica

Telefónica, SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services in Europe and Latin America. The company offers mobile and related services and products, such as mobile voice, value added, mobile data and internet, wholesale, corporate, roaming, fixed wireless, and trunking and paging services.