Insider Selling: Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS) CAO Sells 800 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Anita J. Kroll, the Chief Accounting Officer of Telephone and Data Systems, sold 800 shares of the company’s stock for a total of $31,328, reducing her position by 3.94%.
• For the latest quarter, the company reported a loss of ($0.05) EPS, missing analyst expectations, while revenues were $1.19 billion, slightly above estimates but down by 5.7% year-over-year.
• Telephone and Data Systems announced a quarterly dividend of $0.04 per share, with a payment date set for September 30th, providing a 0.4% yield based on an annualized basis.

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS - Get Free Report) CAO Anita J. Kroll sold 800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.16, for a total value of $31,328.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 19,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $763,306.72. This represents a 3.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Telephone and Data Systems Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of TDS traded down $0.42 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $38.69. 123,869 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,059,932. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $20.45 and a 1-year high of $42.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a PE ratio of -39.82 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a fifty day moving average of $36.99 and a 200-day moving average of $36.29.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 11th. The Wireless communications provider reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. Telephone and Data Systems had a negative net margin of 0.85% and a positive return on equity of 0.92%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.13) EPS. Analysts expect that Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. will post -0.31 EPS for the current year.

Telephone and Data Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Telephone and Data Systems's dividend payout ratio is currently -16.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Telephone and Data Systems

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TDS. Third Point LLC increased its holdings in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 108.7% in the fourth quarter. Third Point LLC now owns 6,000,000 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $204,660,000 after acquiring an additional 3,125,000 shares in the last quarter. Carronade Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 239.3% in the second quarter. Carronade Capital Management LP now owns 3,392,500 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $120,705,000 after acquiring an additional 2,392,500 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems in the first quarter worth about $43,429,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems in the second quarter worth about $22,531,000. Finally, Silver Point Capital L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 47.2% in the fourth quarter. Silver Point Capital L.P. now owns 1,840,000 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $62,762,000 after acquiring an additional 590,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Telephone and Data Systems from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Wall Street Zen raised Telephone and Data Systems from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday. Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on Telephone and Data Systems from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Telephone and Data Systems from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th.

About Telephone and Data Systems

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc, a telecommunications company, provides communications services in the United States. It operates through two segments: UScellular and TDS Telecom. The company offers wireless solutions to consumers, and business and government customers, including a suite of connected Internet of things (IoT) solutions, and software applications for monitor and control, business automation/operations, communication, fleet and asset management, smart water solutions, private cellular networks and custom, and end-to-end IoT solutions; wireless priority services and quality priority and preemption options; smartphones and other handsets, tablets, wearables, mobile hotspots, fixed wireless home internet, and IoT devices; and accessories, such as cases, screen protectors, chargers, and memory cards, as well as consumer electronics, including audio, home automation and networking products.