Skylands Capital LLC Makes New Investment in United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM)

Skylands Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 16,300 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,022,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of USM. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 6.3% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 4,148 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in United States Cellular by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 36,029 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $1,969,000 after buying an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of United States Cellular in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Creative Planning raised its position in shares of United States Cellular by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,238 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $396,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC increased its stake in United States Cellular by 22.9% in the third quarter. Innealta Capital LLC now owns 5,329 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 994 shares during the last quarter. 18.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on USM. Raymond James raised United States Cellular from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $86.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of United States Cellular from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of United States Cellular from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday.

United States Cellular Price Performance

Shares of United States Cellular stock opened at $65.18 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a PE ratio of -181.06 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $63.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $60.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. United States Cellular Co. has a 12-month low of $32.01 and a 12-month high of $69.20.

United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by $0.15. The company had revenue of $970.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $964.70 million. United States Cellular had a positive return on equity of 1.55% and a negative net margin of 0.79%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that United States Cellular Co. will post 0.57 EPS for the current year.

About United States Cellular

United States Cellular Corporation provides wireless telecommunications services in the United States. The company offers wireless services, including voice, messaging, and data services. It also provides wireless devices, such as handsets, tablets, mobile hotspots, home phones, and routers, as well as wireless essentials, including cases, screen protectors, chargers, and memory cards; and consumer electronics comprising audio, home automation, and networking products.