Telefônica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) Hits New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Telefônica Brasil S.A. (NYSE:VIV - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $10.51 and last traded at $10.41, with a volume of 561146 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $10.35.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on VIV. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Telefônica Brasil from $9.20 to $10.30 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays upgraded shares of Telefônica Brasil from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $23.60 to $23.00 in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of Telefônica Brasil from $20.80 to $18.40 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Telefônica Brasil from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $17.23.

Telefônica Brasil Price Performance

The stock's 50 day moving average is $11.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.72.

Telefônica Brasil (NYSE:VIV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.12 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.41 billion. Telefônica Brasil had a net margin of 9.78% and a return on equity of 7.77%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Telefônica Brasil S.A. will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Telefônica Brasil Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th were paid a $0.043 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 25th. This is an increase from Telefônica Brasil's previous dividend of $0.02. Telefônica Brasil's dividend payout ratio is currently 91.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Telefônica Brasil

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Truist Financial Corp acquired a new position in Telefônica Brasil in the fourth quarter valued at $242,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Telefônica Brasil during the fourth quarter worth approximately $403,000. Banco BTG Pactual S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Telefônica Brasil during the fourth quarter worth approximately $237,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 67.6% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 912,148 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $6,887,000 after acquiring an additional 367,975 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,078,200 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $15,690,000 after acquiring an additional 78,200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 5.16% of the company's stock.

Telefônica Brasil Company Profile

Telefônica Brasil SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a mobile telecommunications company in Brazil. Its fixed line services portfolio includes local, domestic long-distance, and international long-distance calls; and mobile portfolio comprises voice and broadband internet access through 3G, 4G, 4.5G, and 5G, as well as mobile value-added and wireless roaming services.