Vodafone Group (NASDAQ:VOD) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Vodafone Group PLC (NASDAQ:VOD - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $10.66 and last traded at $10.60, with a volume of 810088 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $10.37.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on VOD. Bank of America cut shares of Vodafone Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. DZ Bank raised shares of Vodafone Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vodafone Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an "underweight" rating on shares of Vodafone Group in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Vodafone Group Stock Performance

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $9.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $9.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.43 billion, a PE ratio of 9.35 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85.

Vodafone Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $0.2355 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 6.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Vodafone Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.23%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VOD. ACR Alpine Capital Research LLC grew its position in Vodafone Group by 16.8% during the first quarter. ACR Alpine Capital Research LLC now owns 25,696,928 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $240,780,000 after purchasing an additional 3,690,617 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vodafone Group by 341.2% during the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 4,146,322 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $35,202,000 after acquiring an additional 3,206,506 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Vodafone Group during the fourth quarter valued at $21,969,000. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC grew its stake in Vodafone Group by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 14,598,375 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $123,940,000 after purchasing an additional 2,238,935 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Vodafone Group by 749.7% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,151,935 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $18,270,000 after purchasing an additional 1,898,663 shares during the last quarter. 7.84% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vodafone Group Company Profile

Vodafone Group Public Limited Company provides telecommunication services in Europe and internationally. It offers mobile connectivity services comprising end-to-end services for mobile voice and data, messaging, device management, BYOx, and telecoms management, as well as professional and consulting services; and fixed line connectivity, such as fixed voice and data, broadband, software-defined networks, managed WAN, LAN, ethernet, and satellite; and financial services, as well as business and merchant services.