Nokia (NYSE:NOK) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $15.32 and last traded at $15.06, with a volume of 40983034 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $14.18.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Nokia in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Danske lowered shares of Nokia from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Argus raised shares of Nokia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Nokia from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nokia from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Nokia presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $9.71.

Nokia Stock Up 10.6%

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $10.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $8.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.04 billion, a PE ratio of 98.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.12.

Nokia (NYSE:NOK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The technology company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Nokia had a net margin of 4.02% and a return on equity of 9.22%. The business had revenue of $5.21 billion for the quarter. On average, analysts forecast that Nokia Corporation will post 0.4 EPS for the current year.

Nokia Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 28th were paid a dividend of $0.0468 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 28th. This is an increase from Nokia’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.04. This represents a $0.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Nokia’s payout ratio is presently 81.25%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nokia

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Nokia by 248.7% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,815 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 2,721 shares during the period. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Nokia during the third quarter worth $29,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Nokia by 33,457.1% during the fourth quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 4,698 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 4,684 shares during the period. Dorato Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Nokia during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Nokia during the third quarter worth $34,000. 5.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nokia Company Profile

Nokia Corporation, headquartered in Espoo, Finland, is a global telecommunications and technology company with roots dating back to 1865. Over its long history the company moved from forestry and cable operations into electronics and telecommunications, becoming widely known in the 1990s and 2000s for its mobile phones. In recent years Nokia refocused its business toward network infrastructure, software and technology licensing, and research and development, following the divestiture of its handset manufacturing business and the acquisition of Alcatel‑Lucent in 2016, which brought Bell Labs into its portfolio.

Today Nokia’s core activities center on designing, building and supporting communications networks and related software.