Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $12.12 and last traded at $12.0850, with a volume of 8934279 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.87.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ERIC shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ericsson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Ericsson in a report on Friday, January 16th. Argus upgraded Ericsson to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ericsson in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Ericsson in a research report on Monday, February 9th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $11.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ericsson presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $11.00.

Ericsson Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $40.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.91. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $11.40 and its 200 day moving average is $10.22.

Ericsson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.1663 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 2nd. Ericsson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ericsson

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quantitative Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Ericsson during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,349,000. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in shares of Ericsson by 98.4% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 91,471 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $886,000 after purchasing an additional 45,359 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC increased its holdings in Ericsson by 33.9% in the 4th quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 43,232 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $417,000 after buying an additional 10,955 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its position in Ericsson by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 42,902 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $414,000 after buying an additional 2,869 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Ericsson during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $126,000. 7.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ericsson Company Profile

Ericsson AB is a Swedish multinational telecommunications equipment and services company headquartered in Stockholm. Founded in 1876 by Lars Magnus Ericsson, the company designs, develops and sells infrastructure, software and services that enable mobile and fixed-line networks worldwide. Ericsson serves a global customer base that includes mobile network operators, enterprise customers and public-sector organizations across Europe, the Americas, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa.

The company’s core activities center on building and modernizing network infrastructure, with a particular focus on radio access networks (RAN), core network software, cloud-native solutions and network management systems.