ADT (NYSE:ADT) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Shares of ADT Inc. (NYSE:ADT) gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $8.19, but opened at $7.74. ADT shares last traded at $7.74, with a volume of 8,361,394 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on ADT shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of ADT from $8.50 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of ADT in a report on Wednesday, January 29th.

ADT Trading Down 7.9 %

The stock has a market cap of $6.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.20 and a beta of 1.50. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $7.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $7.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93.

ADT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a $0.055 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. ADT’s payout ratio is 23.91%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ADT

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ADT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ADT by 20.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,555,115 shares of the security and automation business’s stock valued at $307,876,000 after purchasing an additional 7,610,709 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of ADT by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 34,574,011 shares of the security and automation business’s stock worth $238,906,000 after buying an additional 3,632,502 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in ADT in the 4th quarter valued at about $153,824,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in ADT by 31.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 21,453,811 shares of the security and automation business’s stock worth $148,246,000 after acquiring an additional 5,089,056 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management lifted its holdings in ADT by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 10,843,323 shares of the security and automation business’s stock worth $74,927,000 after purchasing an additional 523,333 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.22% of the company’s stock.

About ADT

ADT Inc provides security, interactive, and smart home solutions to residential and small business customers in the United States. It operates through two segments, Consumer and Small Business, and Solar. The company provides burglar and life safety alarms, smart security cameras, smart home automation systems, and video surveillance systems.