Telephone and Data Systems (TDS) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

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. Operating in more than 30 states, the unit supports communities with fiber-based networks and managed IT offerings under the OneNeck IT Solutions brand, addressing the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises as well as government and educational institutions.

U.S. Cellular, the company’s wireless arm, ranks among the nation’s largest regional mobile network operators. It offers nationwide LTE coverage and a growing portfolio of 5G services to consumers and businesses in over 20 states. The carrier emphasizes customer service and regional network performance, positioning itself as a community-focused alternative within the U.S. wireless market.

Founded in 1969 by the Carlson family, Telephone and Data Systems has evolved from a single telephone provider into a multifaceted telecom holding company. Headquartered in Chicago, the company is governed by an executive leadership team with longstanding experience in the industry and maintains a board of directors that includes members of the founding family.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $41.55 to $42.55
• 50-Day Range: $40.53 to $46.48
• 52-Week Range: $32.60 to $49.12
• Volume: 920,087 shs
• Average Volume: 957,303 shs
• Market Capitalization: $4.73 billion
• P/E Ratio: 78.44
• Dividend Yield: 0.38%
• Price Target: $53.33
• Consensus Rating: Hold

Telephone and Data Systems Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Telephone and Data Systems scored higher than 54% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 69th out of 94 stocks in the utilities sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 3.8 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Hold

Consensus Rating

Telephone and Data Systems has received a consensus rating of Hold. The company's average rating score is 2.40, and is based on no strong buy ratings, 2 buy ratings, 3 hold ratings, and no sell ratings.

Upside Potential

Telephone and Data Systems has a consensus price target of $53.33, representing about 28.3% upside from its current price of $41.57.

Amount of Analyst Coverage

Telephone and Data Systems has only been the subject of 3 research reports in the past 90 days.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 0.0 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: -94.68%

Earnings Growth

Earnings for Telephone and Data Systems are expected to decrease by -94.68% in the coming year, from $0.94 to $0.05 per share.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Telephone and Data Systems is 78.44, which means that it is trading at a more expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 44.54.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Telephone and Data Systems is 78.44, which means that it is trading at a more expensive P/E ratio than the Utilities sector average P/E ratio of about 20.20.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Telephone and Data Systems has a P/B Ratio of 1.13. P/B Ratios below 3 indicates that a company is reasonably valued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 2.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Bearish

Percentage of Shares Shorted

4.17% of the float of Telephone and Data Systems has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Telephone and Data Systems has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 6.66.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Telephone and Data Systems has recently increased by 3.23%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing.

Dividend

• Score: 0.8 / 5
• Dividend Strength: Weak

Dividend Yield

Telephone and Data Systems has a dividend yield of 0.38%, which is in the bottom 25% of all stocks that pay dividends.

Dividend Growth

Telephone and Data Systems does not have a long track record of dividend growth.

Dividend Coverage

The dividend payout ratio of Telephone and Data Systems is 30.19%. This payout ratio is at a healthy, sustainable level, below 75%.

Dividend Sustainability

Based on EPS estimates, Telephone and Data Systems will have a dividend payout ratio of 320.00% in the coming year. This indicates that Telephone and Data Systems may not be able to sustain their current dividend.

News and Social Media

• Score: 2.9 / 5
• News Sentiment: 0.61

News Sentiment

Telephone and Data Systems has a news sentiment score of 0.61. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This news sentiment score is similar to the average news sentiment of Utilities companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 4 news articles for Telephone and Data Systems this week, compared to 2 articles on an average week.

Search Interest

Only 2 people have searched for TDS on MarketBeat in the last 30 days. This is a decrease of -33% compared to the previous 30 days.

MarketBeat Follows

2 people have added Telephone and Data Systems to their MarketBeat watchlist in the last 30 days.

Company Ownership

• Score: 1.2 / 5
• Insider Trading: N/A

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Telephone and Data Systems insiders have not sold or bought any company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

14.24% of the stock of Telephone and Data Systems is held by insiders. A high percentage of insider ownership can be a sign of company health.

Percentage Held by Institutions

80.00% of the stock of Telephone and Data Systems is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

Company Calendar

• Record date for 3/31 Dividend: 3/16/2026
• Ex-Dividend for 3/31 Dividend: 3/16/2026
• Dividend Payable: 3/31/2026
• Last Earnings: 5/08/2026
• Today: 5/21/2026
• Fiscal Year End: 12/31/2026

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NYSE
• Sector: Utilities
• Industry: Wireline - National
• Sub-Industry: Wireless Telecommunication Services
• Current Symbol: NYSE:TDS
• CIK: 1051512
• Web: www.tdsinc.com
• Phone: (312) 630-1900
• Fax: 608-830-5618
• Employees: 4,000
• Year Founded: 1969

Price Target and Rating

• Average Price Target for Telephone and Data Systems: $53.33
• High Price Target: $56.00
• Low Price Target: $50.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: +28.3%
• Consensus Rating: Hold
• Rating Score (0-4): 2.40
• Research Coverage: 5 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $0.53
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 78.44
• Forward P/E Ratio: 44.22
• P/E Growth: N/A
• Net Income: -$6.24 million
• Net Margins: 6.15%
• Pretax Margin: 15.70%
• Return on Equity: 5.54%
• Return on Assets: 2.49%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 0.16
• Current Ratio: 3.43
• Quick Ratio: 3.42

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $1.23 billion
• Price / Sales: 3.85
• Cash Flow: $3.81 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 10.90
• Book Value: $36.81 per share
• Price / Book: 1.13

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 113,800,000
• Free Float: 97,595,000
• Market Cap: $4.73 billion
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 0.33