AT&T (NYSE:T) Shares Down 1.5% - Here's Why

Shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) were down 1.5% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $26.71 and last traded at $26.73. Approximately 8,587,203 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 42,267,316 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.15.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target 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. BNP Paribas raised shares of AT&T from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $28.50 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on AT&T from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on AT&T from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on AT&T from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AT&T currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $27.24.

AT&T Stock Up 0.5 %

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $26.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.22. The firm has a market cap of $194.46 billion, a PE ratio of 18.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

AT&T (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $30.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.39 billion. AT&T had a return on equity of 13.97% and a net margin of 8.95%. On average, analysts anticipate that AT&T Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.2775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.10%. AT&T's dividend payout ratio is 74.50%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AT&T

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AT&T in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in AT&T in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in AT&T in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in AT&T during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in AT&T during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 57.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About AT&T

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.