StockNews.com Upgrades United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) to Hold

StockNews.com upgraded shares of United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on USM. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on United States Cellular from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Raymond James upgraded shares of 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 report on Thursday, November 7th.

United States Cellular Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:USM opened at $61.54 on Wednesday. United States Cellular has a one year low of $32.01 and a one year high of $68.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -170.94 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.06. 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 (NYSE:USM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.13. United States Cellular had a positive return on equity of 1.55% and a negative net margin of 0.79%. The firm had revenue of $922.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $940.40 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that United States Cellular will post 0.57 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United States Cellular

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of USM. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of United States Cellular by 4.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 166,181 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $9,085,000 after buying an additional 7,449 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of United States Cellular by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 24,636 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $1,345,000 after purchasing an additional 2,405 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of United States Cellular during the 3rd quarter worth $444,000. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of United States Cellular by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 106,343 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $5,812,000 after purchasing an additional 12,219 shares during the period. Finally, Ionic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of United States Cellular in the 3rd quarter valued at about $246,000. 18.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.