Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The Wireless communications provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.87) by $1.98, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $309.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $313.27 million. Telephone and Data Systems had a net margin of 6.15% and a return on equity of 5.54%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.09) EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Telephone and Data Systems' conference call:

• TDS proposed to acquire the remaining public shares of Array in an all-stock merger exchanging each Array share for 0.86 TDS shares, assuming an Array dividend of $10.40 per share (~$900M) from spectrum sales; the offer is subject to a special committee review, disinterested Array shareholder approval and other customary conditions.
• TDS Telecom accelerated its fiber build and customer growth, delivering a record 40,000 marketable fiber service addresses in Q1 (1.1M total addresses now) and reaffirming a 2026 target of 200k–250k new fiber addresses with $550M–$600M capex guidance.
• Legacy copper and cable pressures are weighing on near-term results — total operating revenue fell ~3% (1% ex-divestitures), adjusted EBITDA declined 3%, cable revenues were down ~10%, and management is guiding toward the lower half of the revenue range due to these headwinds.
• Array’s tower business and spectrum monetization are progressing — cash site rental revenue rose ~64% YoY (normalized for Dish), multiple spectrum sales have closed or are expected to close in Q2/Q3, and substantial spectrum dividends have been declared/paid.
• Dish has stopped payments and is in breach of its master lease agreement, so Array ceased recognizing Dish revenue and reserved unpaid 2025 balances, although management says tenancy (excluding Dish) showed sequential improvement.

Telephone and Data Systems Stock Performance

Shares of TDS opened at $42.78 on Wednesday. Telephone and Data Systems has a one year low of $32.60 and a one year high of $49.12. The business has a fifty day moving average of $44.27 and a 200 day moving average of $42.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 3.43 and a quick ratio of 2.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 80.71 and a beta of 0.33.

Telephone and Data Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were paid a dividend of $0.04 per share. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. Telephone and Data Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.19%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Telephone and Data Systems

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TDS. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 191.3% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,311 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 861 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in Telephone and Data Systems in the fourth quarter worth about $91,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 36.8% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,965 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 797 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Telephone and Data Systems during the third quarter valued at about $136,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.00% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on TDS. Wall Street Zen raised Telephone and Data Systems from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Raymond James Financial downgraded Telephone and Data Systems from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Telephone and Data Systems from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Telephone and Data Systems from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Telephone and Data Systems presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $53.33.

Telephone and Data Systems Company Profile

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.