Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Increases Position in United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM - Free Report) by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 143,021 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock after buying an additional 31,934 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.17% of United States Cellular worth $7,816,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in United States Cellular in the second quarter valued at $115,000. Welch Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United States Cellular in the 2nd quarter valued at about $614,000. TCW Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 200.8% in the 2nd quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 212,294 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $11,850,000 after purchasing an additional 141,713 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. purchased a new stake in United States Cellular in the second quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in United States Cellular in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 18.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on United States Cellular from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com raised United States Cellular from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Raymond James raised United States Cellular from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $86.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th.

United States Cellular Stock Performance

United States Cellular stock traded up $0.57 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $61.42. 88,998 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 227,732. The stock has a market cap of $5.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -169.03 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.57. United States Cellular Co. has a 52-week low of $32.01 and a 52-week high of $68.31. The firm's 50 day moving average is $60.98 and its 200 day moving average is $56.73.

United States Cellular (NYSE:USM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $922.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $940.40 million. United States Cellular had a negative net margin of 0.79% and a positive return on equity of 1.55%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share. Analysts predict that United States Cellular Co. will post 0.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United States Cellular Company Profile

United States Cellular Corporation provides wireless telecommunications services in the United States. The company offers wireless services, including voice, messaging, and data services. It also provides wireless devices, such as handsets, tablets, mobile hotspots, home phones, and routers, as well as wireless essentials, including cases, screen protectors, chargers, and memory cards; and consumer electronics comprising audio, home automation, and networking products.