Telefonica Brasil S.A. (NYSE:VIV) Given Average Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Telefonica Brasil S.A. (NYSE:VIV) has received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the ten analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $14.66.

VIV has been the topic of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Telefonica Brasil in a report on Monday, May 18th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $13.90 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $14.00 price objective on shares of Telefonica Brasil in a research note on Thursday. Bradesco Corretora lowered shares of Telefonica Brasil to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Barclays set a $16.00 price target on Telefonica Brasil in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Telefonica Brasil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th.

Telefonica Brasil Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VIV opened at $11.45 on Tuesday. Telefonica Brasil has a fifty-two week low of $11.18 and a fifty-two week high of $17.25. The company has a market cap of $18.62 billion, a PE ratio of 14.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.95. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.40.

Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.04). Telefonica Brasil had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 10.64%.The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Telefonica Brasil will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Telefonica Brasil Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were given a $0.4562 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 22nd. Telefonica Brasil’s dividend payout ratio is 78.21%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Telefonica Brasil

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Telefonica Brasil by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,802 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $140,000 after buying an additional 672 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC lifted its stake in Telefonica Brasil by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 22,285 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 727 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its holdings in Telefonica Brasil by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 26,638 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $316,000 after buying an additional 744 shares during the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. boosted its holdings in Telefonica Brasil by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 16,750 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 839 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aprio Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Telefonica Brasil by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 39,645 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $470,000 after buying an additional 845 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 5.16% of the company’s stock.

Telefonica Brasil Company Profile

Telefônica Brasil SA, commonly marketed under the Vivo brand, is one of Brazil’s largest telecommunications providers, offering a broad range of consumer and enterprise communications services. The company’s core activities include mobile voice and data services, fixed-line telephony, broadband internet (including fiber-to-the-home), and pay-TV solutions. It also provides ICT and managed services for business customers, such as cloud, data center, connectivity, Internet of Things (IoT) and security solutions.

Vivo operates a nationwide network across Brazil and serves both individual consumers and corporate clients.