Telefônica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

Telefônica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. Barclays upped their price target on Telefônica Brasil from $11.00 to $11.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Scotiabank upped their target price on Telefônica Brasil from $9.20 to $10.40 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Telefônica Brasil has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $10.97.

Telefônica Brasil Stock Performance

Telefônica Brasil stock traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $8.94. 632,687 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 808,212. The firm has a market cap of $14.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.18, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $9.64 and a 200 day moving average of $9.13. Telefônica Brasil has a 12 month low of $8.02 and a 12 month high of $11.43.

Telefônica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.03. Telefônica Brasil had a return on equity of 7.77% and a net margin of 9.78%. The company had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.18 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Telefônica Brasil will post 0.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Telefônica Brasil

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIV. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Telefônica Brasil during the third quarter worth about $5,135,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 49.0% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,171,789 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $12,034,000 after purchasing an additional 385,207 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of Telefônica Brasil during the third quarter worth about $198,000. Caprock Group LLC raised its position in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 37.7% during the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 71,738 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $737,000 after purchasing an additional 19,628 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 2.8% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 85,787 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $881,000 after purchasing an additional 2,304 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 5.16% of the company’s stock.

About Telefônica Brasil

Telefônica Brasil SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a mobile telecommunications company in Brazil. Its fixed line services portfolio includes local, domestic long-distance, and international long-distance calls; and mobile portfolio comprises voice and broadband internet access through 3G, 4G, 4.5G, and 5G, as well as mobile value-added and wireless roaming services.