Shares of United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) have been given an average rating of “Buy” by the nine research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $41.64.
A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on United States Cellular from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 11th. Zacks Investment Research raised United States Cellular from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $45.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 target price (down from $42.00) on shares of United States Cellular in a report on Monday, March 1st. Raymond James reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of United States Cellular in a report on Monday, February 22nd. Finally, Citigroup Inc. 3% Minimum Coupon Principal Protected Based Upon Russell lifted their target price on United States Cellular from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 14th.
In related news, EVP Deirdre Drake sold 13,747 shares of United States Cellular stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.25, for a total value of $498,328.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director J Samuel Crowley sold 2,123 shares of United States Cellular stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.59, for a total value of $73,434.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,513 shares in the company, valued at approximately $225,284.67. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 16,570 shares of company stock worth $597,695. 0.62% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its stake in United States Cellular by 14.7% in the 1st quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 377,228 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $13,761,000 after purchasing an additional 48,366 shares in the last quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. increased its stake in United States Cellular by 21.0% in the 1st quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 603,400 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $22,012,000 after purchasing an additional 104,820 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in United States Cellular by 50.4% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 12,515 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $457,000 after purchasing an additional 4,192 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors purchased a new position in United States Cellular in the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. purchased a new position in United States Cellular in the 1st quarter worth about $1,204,000. 15.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Shares of USM opened at $37.36 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.54 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a current ratio of 3.14. United States Cellular has a one year low of $28.19 and a one year high of $38.93. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $36.39 and its 200-day moving average is $33.08.
United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 6th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $984.37 million. United States Cellular had a return on equity of 5.62% and a net margin of 6.03%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that United States Cellular will post 2.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.
About United States Cellular
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 accessories; sells wireless devices to agents and other third-party distributors for resale; and offers option to purchase devices and accessories under instalment contracts.
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