Wall Street Zen Upgrades Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) to Buy

Key Points

• Telefonica Brasil was upgraded from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, while other analysts have varied opinions, with two giving a Buy rating and three assigning a Hold rating.
• The company's current average target price is $12.70, with recent price targets ranging from $12.50 to $13.00 from different analysts.
• Telefonica Brasil reported $0.15 earnings per share for the last quarter, which was below the analyst consensus estimate of $0.16.

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Saturday morning.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Telefonica Brasil from $11.40 to $12.60 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an "underweight" rating on shares of Telefonica Brasil in a report on Friday, August 8th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $13.00 price objective (up previously from $12.50) on shares of Telefonica Brasil in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research cut Telefonica Brasil from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on Telefonica Brasil from $8.80 to $12.50 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $12.70.

Telefonica Brasil Stock Performance

Shares of VIV stock traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $12.23. The stock had a trading volume of 444,813 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,296,007. Telefonica Brasil has a one year low of $7.47 and a one year high of $12.92. The firm has a market cap of $19.89 billion, a PE ratio of 19.72, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.81. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $11.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.16 by ($0.01). Telefonica Brasil had a net margin of 10.13% and a return on equity of 8.32%. The firm had revenue of $2.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.48 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Telefonica Brasil will post 0.6 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Telefonica Brasil by 39.3% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in Telefonica Brasil by 337.7% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 4,233 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 3,266 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC bought a new position in Telefonica Brasil during the first quarter worth about $41,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Telefonica Brasil in the first quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Telefonica Brasil by 214.0% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,766 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 3,248 shares during the period. 5.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Telefonica 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.