Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Raises Stock Position in AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)

Key Points

• Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in AT&T Inc. by 150.6% during the first quarter, owning a total of 43,914 shares valued at approximately $1.24 million.
• AT&T recently reported a net margin of 10.29% and a year-over-year revenue increase of 3.4%, with earnings per share (EPS) of $0.54, slightly surpassing analysts’ expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.2775 per share, giving an annualized yield of 3.8% and a payout ratio of 63.07%.

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - Free Report) by 150.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,914 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 26,388 shares during the period. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.'s holdings in AT&T were worth $1,242,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund raised its stake in shares of AT&T by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 1,519,470 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $42,971,000 after acquiring an additional 10,100 shares during the period. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. increased its stake in AT&T by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. now owns 35,488 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,004,000 after buying an additional 1,019 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC increased its stake in AT&T by 17.7% during the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 113,957,259 shares of the technology company's stock worth $3,222,711,000 after buying an additional 17,177,874 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in AT&T by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 18,738 shares of the technology company's stock worth $530,000 after buying an additional 977 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in AT&T by 26.9% during the 1st quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,838 shares of the technology company's stock worth $165,000 after buying an additional 1,236 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.10% of the company's stock.

AT&T Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE T opened at $28.89 on Friday. AT&T Inc. has a one year low of $19.08 and a one year high of $29.19. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $206.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.42.

AT&T (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $30.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.44 billion. AT&T had a net margin of 10.29% and a return on equity of 13.36%. AT&T's revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that AT&T Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were paid a dividend of $0.2775 per share. This represents a $1.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. AT&T's payout ratio is presently 63.07%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on T shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of AT&T from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and set a $31.00 price target (up previously from $30.00) on shares of AT&T in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. HSBC downgraded 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 note on Thursday, July 24th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of AT&T from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $31.00 price objective (up from $30.00) on shares of AT&T in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $30.21.

About AT&T

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.

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