PLDT (NYSE:PHI) Upgraded to "Strong Sell" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• PLDT has been upgraded to a "strong sell" rating by Zacks Research, indicating a significant bearish outlook from investment analysts.
• The company's stock performance shows a market capitalization of $4.89 billion and a P/E ratio of 8.73, with shares recently trading at $22.62.
• PLDT recently reported earnings of $0.71 per share, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73, pointing to potential challenges in meeting investor expectations.

Zacks Research upgraded shares of PLDT (NYSE:PHI - Free Report) to a strong sell rating in a report issued on Tuesday, August 12th,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded PLDT from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Sell".

PLDT Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of PLDT stock traded up $0.05 on Tuesday, hitting $22.58. The company had a trading volume of 13,004 shares, compared to its average volume of 67,944. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.71. PLDT has a 1 year low of $20.29 and a 1 year high of $29.05. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $22.32 and a 200-day moving average of $22.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.37.

PLDT Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.8414 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 27th. This represents a yield of 530.0%. This is a boost from PLDT's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.81. PLDT's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.10%.

Institutional Trading of PLDT

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PHI. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of PLDT by 51.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the technology company's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. MAI Capital Management purchased a new stake in PLDT during the 2nd quarter valued at $65,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of PLDT by 155.1% in the 2nd 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. boosted its holdings in PLDT by 759.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,774 shares of the technology company's stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 3,335 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in PLDT by 49.4% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,396 shares of the technology company's stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 1,453 shares during the period. 2.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.