Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Telephone and Data Systems has an average analyst recommendation of "Hold" from five covering firms, with three hold ratings and two buy ratings. The average 12-month price target is $53.33.
• The company recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.11 per share, topping expectations, while revenue came in slightly below estimates at $309.45 million. Revenue still rose 6.5% year over year, and analysts expect full-year EPS of 0.94.
• TDS also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.04 per share, equal to an annualized yield of about 0.5%. The stock was trading near its 52-week low at $34.92, down 0.9% on the day.

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the five ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $53.3333.

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Telephone and Data Systems from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Telephone and Data Systems from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Telephone and Data Systems from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th.

Institutional Trading of Telephone and Data Systems

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TDS. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 51.3% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 681 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Telephone and Data Systems in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 2,779.5% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,123 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,084 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 29.2% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,085 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the period. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Telephone and Data Systems in the first quarter valued at about $90,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.00% of the company's stock.

Telephone and Data Systems Stock Down 0.9%

NYSE:TDS opened at $34.92 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $40.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.54. Telephone and Data Systems has a 52-week low of $34.75 and a 52-week high of $49.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 3.42 and a current ratio of 3.43. The company has a market cap of $3.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.88 and a beta of 0.30.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The Wireless communications provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.87) by $1.98. The company had revenue of $309.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $313.27 million. Telephone and Data Systems had a return on equity of 5.54% and a net margin of 6.15%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.09) EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Telephone and Data Systems will post 0.94 EPS for the current year.

Telephone and Data Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th were issued a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 16th. Telephone and Data Systems's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.19%.

About Telephone and Data Systems

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc NYSE: TDS is a diversified telecommunications company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Through its subsidiaries, the company provides a broad array of communications services, including wireless voice and data, wireline broadband and voice, cable television, and managed IT and cloud solutions. Its two primary operating units—TDS Telecom and U.S. Cellular—serve residential, business and wholesale customers across the United States.

TDS Telecom focuses on delivering broadband internet, digital voice, video and data communications services in primarily rural and suburban markets.

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