Smith Salley Wealth Management Grows Stock Holdings in AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)

Smith Salley Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) by 9.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 120,133 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,028 shares during the period. Smith Salley Wealth Management’s holdings in AT&T were worth $3,397,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Next Level Private LLC increased its position in shares of AT&T by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Next Level Private LLC now owns 113,379 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,206,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC grew its position in AT&T by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 24,161 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $550,000 after buying an additional 384 shares during the period. Kozak & Associates Inc. grew its position in AT&T by 9.4% during the first quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 4,617 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 398 shares during the period. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated increased its holdings in AT&T by 0.3% during the first quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 114,324 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,222,000 after buying an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in AT&T by 4.1% in the first quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC now owns 10,114 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on T shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of AT&T from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of AT&T in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on AT&T from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Barclays upped their price target on AT&T from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 price objective (up from $30.00) on shares of AT&T in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $28.90.

AT&T Price Performance

T stock opened at $28.97 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.70. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $27.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.01. AT&T Inc. has a one year low of $18.14 and a one year high of $29.03. The company has a market capitalization of $208.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 0.41.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.01). AT&T had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 9.64%. The company had revenue of $30.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.55 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AT&T Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a $0.2775 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $1.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.83%. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.10%.

About AT&T

AT&T, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of telecommunications and technology services. It operates through the Communications and Latin America segments. The Communications segment offers wireless, wireline telecom, and broadband services to businesses and consumers located in the US and businesses globally.