Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 46,632 Shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. trimmed its position in AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,114,475 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 46,632 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in AT&T were worth $78,628,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its stake in AT&T by 1,379.0% during the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 14,159,133 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $270,581,000 after acquiring an additional 13,201,774 shares during the last quarter. Kodai Capital Management LP bought a new stake in AT&T during the fourth quarter worth approximately $152,109,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in AT&T by 7.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 81,076,641 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,549,375,000 after acquiring an additional 5,592,123 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in AT&T by 120.8% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 9,086,854 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $152,477,000 after acquiring an additional 4,970,954 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thornburg Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in AT&T by 22.0% during the second quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. now owns 24,988,396 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $477,528,000 after acquiring an additional 4,511,725 shares during the last quarter. 57.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AT&T Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:T opened at $21.54 on Friday. AT&T Inc. has a 52-week low of $14.12 and a 52-week high of $22.34. The stock has a market cap of $154.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.59. The business’s 50 day moving average is $19.88 and its 200 day moving average is $18.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The technology company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.57. The company had revenue of $29.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.05 billion. AT&T had a return on equity of 14.16% and a net margin of 10.41%. AT&T’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.63 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that AT&T Inc. will post 2.2 EPS for the current year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.2775 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.15%. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

T has been the topic of several analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic raised AT&T to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Barclays boosted their price objective on AT&T from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on AT&T from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. BNP Paribas upgraded AT&T from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 target price on shares of AT&T in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AT&T presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.31.

AT&T Profile

AT&T Inc provides telecommunications and technology services worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Communications and Latin America. The Communications segment offers wireless voice and data communications services; and sells handsets, wireless data cards, wireless computing devices, carrying cases/protective covers, and wireless chargers through its own company-owned stores, agents, and third-party retail stores.