AT&T (NYSE:T) Shares Up 1% - Here's Why

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) traded up 1% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $25.93 and last traded at $25.88. 31,683,390 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 18% from the average session volume of 38,630,956 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.63.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of AT&T from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of AT&T from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of AT&T from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of AT&T from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of AT&T from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AT&T currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $26.33.

AT&T Stock Down 0.2 %

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $23.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $187.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

AT&T (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The technology company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.06. AT&T had a net margin of 8.95% and a return on equity of 13.97%. As a group, research analysts expect that AT&T Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a $0.2775 dividend. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. AT&T's dividend payout ratio is presently 74.50%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AT&T

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in AT&T by 83.3% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 7,254,746 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $165,191,000 after purchasing an additional 3,297,211 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its position in shares of AT&T by 39.2% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 156,081 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,554,000 after buying an additional 43,966 shares in the last quarter. Griffith & Werner Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AT&T during the 4th quarter worth $5,426,000. Michels Family Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of AT&T during the 4th quarter worth $267,000. Finally, Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in AT&T in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors own 57.10% of the company's stock.

AT&T Company Profile

AT&T, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of telecommunications and technology services. It operates through the Communications and Latin America segments. The Communications segment offers wireless, wireline telecom, and broadband services to businesses and consumers located in the US and businesses globally.