Telefónica (NYSE:TEF) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Telefónica, S.A. (NYSE:TEF) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $4.91, but opened at $5.01. Telefónica shares last traded at $5.00, with a volume of 90,301 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TEF has been the topic of several research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Telefónica in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. DZ Bank lowered Telefónica from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Telefónica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Telefónica presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Telefónica Stock Up 1.0%

The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $4.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.45. The company has a market cap of $28.80 billion, a PE ratio of -19.54 and a beta of 0.46.

Telefónica (NYSE:TEF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The utilities provider reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08. Telefónica had a negative net margin of 2.84% and a positive return on equity of 10.10%. The business had revenue of $9.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.06 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Telefónica, S.A. will post 0.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Telefónica by 20.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 6,243,236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,093,000 after buying an additional 1,065,861 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Telefónica by 0.4% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,638,295 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,954,000 after buying an additional 15,707 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Telefónica by 4.1% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,487,510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,932,000 after purchasing an additional 57,945 shares during the period. Nia Impact Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Telefónica by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Nia Impact Advisors LLC now owns 982,717 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,951,000 after buying an additional 101,030 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Telefónica by 36.7% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 963,584 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,874,000 after buying an additional 258,489 shares during the period. 1.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Telefónica Company Profile

Telefónica, SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services in Europe and Latin America. The company offers mobile and related services and products, such as mobile voice, value added, mobile data and internet, wholesale, corporate, roaming, fixed wireless, and trunking and paging services.