O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Lowers Stake in PLDT Inc. (NYSE:PHI)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of PLDT Inc. (NYSE:PHI - Free Report) by 16.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 65,742 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 13,029 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC's holdings in PLDT were worth $1,456,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of PLDT in the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new stake in PLDT during the third quarter worth approximately $79,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in PLDT by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 11,629 shares of the technology company's stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 1,310 shares during the last quarter. West Family Investments Inc. increased its stake in PLDT by 42.1% during the fourth quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 12,352 shares of the technology company's stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 3,659 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in PLDT by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 12,842 shares of the technology company's stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 807 shares during the last quarter. 2.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PLDT Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE:PHI traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $22.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,827 shares, compared to its average volume of 50,184. The company has a market capitalization of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.86. PLDT Inc. has a 12 month low of $20.29 and a 12 month high of $29.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.34. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $23.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.42.

PLDT (NYSE:PHI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The technology company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $960.62 million for the quarter. PLDT had a return on equity of 22.11% and a net margin of 12.34%. Equities analysts predict that PLDT Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PLDT Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be given a $0.812 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. PLDT's payout ratio is 44.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded PLDT from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th.

About PLDT

PLDT Inc provides telecommunications and digital services in the Philippines. The company operates through three segments: Wireless, Fixed Line, and Others. It offers cellular mobile, Internet broadband distribution, operations support, software development, and satellite information and messaging services; and sells Wi-Fi access equipment.