JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) Price Target to $54.00

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its price target for Telephone and Data Systems (TDS) from $53.00 to $54.00, indicating a potential upside of 41.05% from the previous close.
• Telephone and Data Systems reported a loss of ($0.05) earnings per share for the last quarter, missing analysts' estimates and experiencing a 5.7% decline in revenue compared to the previous year.
• Institutional investors own 80% of Telephone and Data Systems, with several firms increasing their stakes significantly in recent months.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS - Free Report) had its target price raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $53.00 to $54.00 in a research note released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the Wireless communications provider's stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on TDS. Wall Street Zen cut Telephone and Data Systems from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on Telephone and Data Systems from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Telephone and Data Systems Stock Down 0.8%

TDS traded down $0.31 on Tuesday, reaching $38.51. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,449,238 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,619,328. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Telephone and Data Systems has a fifty-two week low of $20.04 and a fifty-two week high of $42.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $36.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.26. The company has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -39.70 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Telephone and Data Systems Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Telephone and Data Systems

In other news, CFO Vicki L. Villacrez sold 58,452 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.56, for a total transaction of $2,253,909.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 26,788 shares in the company, valued at $1,032,945.28. This represents a 68.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Prudence E. Carlson sold 6,320 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.05, for a total value of $240,476.00. Following the sale, the director owned 315,457 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,003,138.85. This trade represents a 1.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 168,497 shares of company stock worth $6,531,504 over the last 90 days. 14.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of TDS. Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new position in Telephone and Data Systems in the fourth quarter worth $56,000. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 42,642 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $1,455,000 after purchasing an additional 2,241 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Telephone and Data Systems in the fourth quarter valued at $5,619,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 33.7% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 11,238 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $383,000 after purchasing an additional 2,835 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 10,319 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.00% of the company's stock.

Telephone and Data Systems Company Profile

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.