Telefonica (NYSE:TEF) Reaches New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Telefonica's share price reached a new 52-week high at $5.49, with recent trading volumes indicating strong investor interest.
• The company announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.1703, reflecting a yield of 450.0% and an increase from its previous dividend payout.
• Analysts have mixed views on Telefonica, with one upgrade to a "buy" rating while 1 analyst gave a "sell" rating, maintaining an average rating of "Hold."

Telefonica SA (NYSE:TEF - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $5.49 and last traded at $5.48, with a volume of 62092 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $5.44.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on TEF shares. Berenberg Bank upgraded Telefonica to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Telefonica from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Telefonica in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, DZ Bank downgraded Telefonica from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Telefonica has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Telefonica Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $5.29 and a 200-day moving average of $4.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. The stock has a market cap of $31.98 billion, a PE ratio of -11.75, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.51.

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

Telefonica Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th were given a $0.1703 dividend. This is a boost from Telefonica's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a dividend yield of 450.0%. Telefonica's payout ratio is currently -52.08%.

Institutional Trading of Telefonica

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in Telefonica by 71.6% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,236 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 2,603 shares during the period. Atwood & Palmer Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Telefonica in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Telefonica by 50.4% during the first quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 10,031 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 3,361 shares during the last quarter. Wrapmanager Inc. acquired a new position in Telefonica during the second quarter worth $53,000. Finally, AlphaCore Capital LLC acquired a new position in Telefonica during the second quarter worth $55,000. 1.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Telefonica Company Profile

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.