Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) (NASDAQ:ERIC) Shares Gap Up to $4.79

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) (NASDAQ:ERIC - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $4.79, but opened at $5.11. Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) shares last traded at $5.01, with a volume of 13,036,546 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on ERIC shares. TheStreet raised Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) from a "d+" rating to a "c-" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. UBS Group downgraded Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays downgraded Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $5.90.

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) Stock Up 1.9 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.25 billion, a PE ratio of -6.68 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a 50 day moving average of $5.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $5.35.

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) (NASDAQ:ERIC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 22nd. The communications equipment provider reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $6.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.04 billion. Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) had a positive return on equity of 11.77% and a negative net margin of 9.82%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.20 EPS. Analysts predict that Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson will post 0.42 EPS for the current year.

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th were paid a dividend of $0.1293 per share. This is a boost from Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)'s previous dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 4th. Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)'s dividend payout ratio is -23.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Affirmative Financial Network increased its holdings in shares of Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 9.4% in the first quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 26,354 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 2,268 shares during the period. Aprio Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 17.5% during the first quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,547 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $97,000 after acquiring an additional 2,609 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 107,824 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $679,000 after acquiring an additional 2,753 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its holdings in Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 31.2% during the third quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 13,457 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 3,201 shares during the period. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 17,673 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 3,606 shares during the period. 7.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ), together with its subsidiaries, provides mobile connectivity solutions for telcom operators and enterprise customers in various sectors in North America, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, North East Asia, South East Asia, Oceania, and India. It operates in four segments: Networks; Cloud Software and Services; Enterprise; and Other.