AT&T Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:T)

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors acquired 70,801 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 27% compared to the typical daily volume of 55,861 call options.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in T. IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of AT&T by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 1,488,172 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $43,142,000 after buying an additional 74,684 shares in the last quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC grew its position in AT&T by 749.1% in the fourth quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 159,598 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,964,000 after acquiring an additional 140,802 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors grew its position in AT&T by 85.0% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 338,942 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $8,419,000 after acquiring an additional 155,728 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in AT&T by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 1,668,862 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $41,449,000 after acquiring an additional 59,279 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV raised its position in AT&T by 120.3% during the fourth quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 2,050,310 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $50,930,000 after purchasing an additional 1,119,731 shares during the period. 57.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

T has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley began coverage on AT&T in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp boosted their price target on AT&T from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on AT&T from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded AT&T from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised AT&T from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $30.55.

Key Stories Impacting AT&T

Here are the key news stories impacting AT&T this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AT&T expanded its Build-A-Plan service, letting customers bundle customized wireless plans with home internet options like AT&T Fiber and Internet Air. The move could improve customer retention, boost bundle sales, and strengthen AT&T’s competitive position. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity showed increased bullish interest, with call volume running above normal. That suggests some traders are positioning for a rebound or expecting favorable catalysts.
• Positive Sentiment: Several recent articles highlighted AT&T as a strong dividend and cash-flow stock, emphasizing its low valuation, high yield, and improved balance-sheet/cash-generation profile. That kind of support can help limit downside among income-focused investors. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: AT&T is drawing heavy attention ahead of earnings and in comparison articles versus Verizon, keeping the stock in focus but not changing the fundamentals by itself.
• Negative Sentiment: Oppenheimer reportedly downgraded AT&T on concerns that SpaceX/Starlink could eventually compete in mobile service. Investors are worried that satellite-based wireless could pressure the long-term telecom market. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Recent reports about SpaceX potentially launching a mobile phone service have also weighed on AT&T and peers like Verizon, driving investor concern about future competition and market share loss. Article Title

AT&T Price Performance

Shares of T traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $20.57. 128,771,525 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 64,691,256. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. AT&T has a 52-week low of $19.89 and a 52-week high of $29.79. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $23.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.55. The company has a market cap of $142.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.24.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $31.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.29 billion. AT&T had a return on equity of 12.49% and a net margin of 16.94%.AT&T’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. AT&T has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.250-2.350 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that AT&T will post 2.31 earnings per share for the current year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.2775 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.25%.

About AT&T

AT&T Inc is a global telecommunications company that provides a broad range of communications and digital entertainment services. Its core activities include consumer and business wireless services, broadband and fiber internet, and network infrastructure. The company operates branded wireless services through AT&T Mobility and deploys fixed-line and fiber networks to deliver high-speed internet and related home services.

AT&T’s product and service portfolio spans mobile voice and data plans, smartphones and device sales, home internet (including fiber-to-the-home where available), and managed connectivity solutions for enterprise customers.