Telefonica (NYSE:TEF) Now Covered by BNP Paribas Exane

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Exane has initiated coverage on Telefonica (NYSE:TEF) with an "underperform" rating, setting a price target of $4.20, which indicates a potential downside of approximately 20.68% from its current price.
• Telefonica has recently reported earnings of $0.08 per share for the quarter, matching analysts' expectations, with revenue of $10.28 billion surpassing the anticipated $9.03 billion.
• Currently, Telefonica has a consensus rating of "Strong Sell" with two analysts recommending a hold, and three issuing sell ratings, reflecting a cautious outlook from market analysts.

Stock analysts at BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on shares of Telefonica (NYSE:TEF - Get Free Report) in a research note issued on Tuesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm set an "underperform" rating and a $4.20 price target on the utilities provider's stock. BNP Paribas Exane's price objective points to a potential downside of 20.68% from the stock's current price.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on TEF. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Telefonica in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Berenberg Bank raised Telefonica to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Telefonica presently has a consensus rating of "Strong Sell" and a consensus target price of $4.20.

Telefonica Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:TEF opened at $5.30 on Tuesday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $5.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.16. Telefonica has a 12-month low of $3.89 and a 12-month high of $5.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47.

Telefonica (NYSE:TEF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.08. The company had revenue of $10.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.03 billion. Telefonica had a positive return on equity of 8.57% and a negative net margin of 5.88%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Telefonica will post 0.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Telefonica

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sterling Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Telefonica during the third quarter worth approximately $846,000. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in Telefonica during the third quarter valued at approximately $280,000. Ethic Inc. increased its holdings in Telefonica by 16.6% during the third quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 495,689 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,518,000 after buying an additional 70,706 shares during the period. Defined Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in Telefonica during the third quarter valued at approximately $92,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Telefonica by 55.7% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 40,954 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $208,000 after buying an additional 14,649 shares during the period. 1.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Telefonica

Telefónica, SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services in Europe and Latin America. The company offers mobile and related services and products, such as mobile voice, value added, mobile data and internet, wholesale, corporate, roaming, fixed wireless, and trunking and paging services.

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