ABC Arbitrage SA Trims Holdings in Vodafone Group PLC (NASDAQ:VOD)

Key Points

• ABC Arbitrage SA reduced its stake in Vodafone Group PLC by 48.5%, now holding approximately 1.37 million shares worth about $12.88 million, making Vodafone the 11th largest holding in its portfolio.
• Several institutional investors have increased their stakes in Vodafone Group, with notable increases from ACR Alpine Capital Research LLC (16.8%) and D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. (341.2%).
• The stock recently experienced a 0.7% increase to $11.04, with a market cap of $26.79 billion and a PE ratio of 9.68.

ABC Arbitrage SA decreased its stake in Vodafone Group PLC (NASDAQ:VOD - Free Report) by 48.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,374,204 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 1,293,182 shares during the quarter. Vodafone Group makes up 2.4% of ABC Arbitrage SA's holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. ABC Arbitrage SA owned about 0.06% of Vodafone Group worth $12,876,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Vodafone Group by 57,500.0% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 29,952 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $254,000 after acquiring an additional 29,900 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in Vodafone Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $970,000. Waverly Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vodafone Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $216,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vodafone Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $125,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Vodafone Group by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 846,901 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $7,190,000 after buying an additional 68,833 shares in the last quarter. 7.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on VOD. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Vodafone Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Vodafone Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They issued an "equal weight" rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Vodafone Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $136.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vodafone Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an "underweight" rating on shares of Vodafone Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vodafone Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $136.00.

Vodafone Group Price Performance

VOD traded up $0.20 on Wednesday, hitting $11.30. 7,433,691 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,302,412. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $10.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.62. The stock has a market cap of $27.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.91, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Vodafone Group PLC has a fifty-two week low of $8.00 and a fifty-two week high of $11.66.

Vodafone Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were paid a dividend of $0.2355 per share. This represents a yield of 660.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. Vodafone Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 42.98%.

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.