PLDT Inc. (NYSE:PHI) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Key Points

• PLDT Inc. experienced a 34.2% decrease in short interest in September, with total short interest falling to 225,300 shares.
• The company has increased its semi-annual dividend to $0.8414 per share, up from the previous $0.81, representing a significant dividend yield of 530.0%.
• PLDT stock has shown volatile trading, with a 1-year low of $18.61 and a high of $27.73, and currently trades at $18.87.

PLDT Inc. (NYSE:PHI - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totaling 225,300 shares, a drop of 34.2% from the August 31st total of 342,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 96,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 96,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Institutional Trading of PLDT

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PHI. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of PLDT by 51.7% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. MAI Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of PLDT in the 2nd quarter valued at $65,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in PLDT by 155.1% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,069 shares of the technology company's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,866 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in PLDT by 759.7% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,774 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 3,335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PLDT during the 2nd quarter valued at $201,000. 2.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on PHI. Zacks Research raised shares of PLDT to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. UBS Group downgraded PLDT from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of PLDT in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, PLDT currently has an average rating of "Reduce".

PLDT Stock Performance

Shares of PLDT stock traded down $0.14 on Monday, hitting $18.87. 135,050 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 80,924. PLDT has a 1 year low of $18.61 and a 1 year high of $27.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.08 billion, a PE ratio of 7.28, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.95.

PLDT Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 27th were issued a dividend of $0.8414 per share. This is a positive change from PLDT's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 27th. This represents a dividend yield of 530.0%. PLDT's payout ratio is currently 47.10%.

PLDT Company Profile

PLDT Inc provides telecommunications and digital services in the Philippines. The company operates through three segments: Wireless, Fixed Line, and Others. It offers cellular mobile, Internet broadband distribution, operations support, software development, and satellite information and messaging services; and sells Wi-Fi access equipment.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.