Telefônica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) Reaches New 1-Year High - Time to Buy?

Telefônica Brasil S.A. (NYSE:VIV - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $10.46 and last traded at $10.37, with a volume of 4221560 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $10.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Telefônica Brasil Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.93 billion, a PE ratio of 16.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.72. The stock's 50-day moving average is $11.53 and its 200 day moving average is $15.05.

Telefônica Brasil (NYSE:VIV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). Telefônica Brasil had a net margin of 9.78% and a return on equity of 7.77%. The company had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.41 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Telefônica Brasil S.A. will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Telefônica Brasil Increases Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Telefônica Brasil

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 39.3% in the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 3,783 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,067 shares during the last quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC now owns 82,053 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $620,000 after buying an additional 1,086 shares during the last quarter. Summit Global Investments grew its position in Telefônica Brasil by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 137,909 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $1,041,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its stake in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 195,958 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $1,478,000 after acquiring an additional 1,653 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 20,037 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $151,000 after acquiring an additional 1,873 shares in 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.