Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Sells 221,134 Shares of Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. $TDS

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL reduced its position in Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS) by 11.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,650,970 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock after selling 221,134 shares during the period. Telephone and Data Systems comprises approximately 0.6% of Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL owned approximately 1.44% of Telephone and Data Systems worth $64,784,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Carronade Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 239.3% in the 2nd quarter. Carronade Capital Management LP now owns 3,392,500 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $120,705,000 after purchasing an additional 2,392,500 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new position in shares of Telephone and Data Systems during the second quarter valued at $22,531,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Telephone and Data Systems during the second quarter valued at $12,068,000. CenterBook Partners LP boosted its position in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 443.5% during the second quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 354,080 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $12,598,000 after buying an additional 288,929 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems during the second quarter valued at $6,698,000. 80.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Telephone and Data Systems Stock Down 0.5%

Telephone and Data Systems stock opened at $44.95 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a PE ratio of -69.15 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.10. Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. has a one year low of $31.07 and a one year high of $47.79. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $44.19 and a 200 day moving average of $40.73.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $330.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $319.28 million. Telephone and Data Systems had a positive return on equity of 2.25% and a negative net margin of 0.21%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.10) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. will post -0.31 EPS for the current year.

Telephone and Data Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Telephone and Data Systems’s dividend payout ratio is -24.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Zacks Research lowered Telephone and Data Systems from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 1st. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Telephone and Data Systems from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Telephone and Data Systems from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Telephone and Data Systems from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, March 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.33.

Telephone and Data Systems Company Profile

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc (NYSE: TDS) is a diversified telecommunications company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Through its subsidiaries, the company provides a broad array of communications services, including wireless voice and data, wireline broadband and voice, cable television, and managed IT and cloud solutions. Its two primary operating units—TDS Telecom and U.S. Cellular—serve residential, business and wholesale customers across the United States.

TDS Telecom focuses on delivering broadband internet, digital voice, video and data communications services in primarily rural and suburban markets.