AT&T (NYSE:T) Coverage Initiated at Sanford C. Bernstein

Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of AT&T (NYSE:T - Free Report) in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm issued an outperform rating and a $28.00 price objective on the technology company's stock.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on T. Moffett Nathanson boosted their target price on shares of AT&T from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of AT&T in a research report on Tuesday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of AT&T from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of AT&T from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Tigress Financial upped their price objective on shares of AT&T from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AT&T presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $25.00.

AT&T Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:T traded up $0.15 on Tuesday, hitting $23.53. 32,848,408 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 35,571,637. AT&T has a 1-year low of $15.94 and a 1-year high of $24.03. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $22.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $168.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 0.59.

AT&T (NYSE:T - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.03. AT&T had a net margin of 7.42% and a return on equity of 13.97%. The business had revenue of $30.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.64 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that AT&T will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a dividend of $0.2775 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.72%. AT&T's dividend payout ratio is presently 90.24%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AT&T

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in AT&T in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE boosted its holdings in AT&T by 169.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE now owns 1,338 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 841 shares during the last quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in AT&T by 356.5% in the 2nd quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 1,429 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,116 shares during the last quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AT&T by 107.5% in the 2nd quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 1,558 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 807 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in shares of AT&T in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. 57.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AT&T Company Profile

AT&T Inc provides telecommunications and technology services worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Communications and Latin America. The Communications segment offers wireless voice and data communications services; and sells handsets, wireless data cards, wireless computing devices, carrying cases/protective covers, and wireless chargers through its own company-owned stores, agents, and third-party retail stores.