PLDT (NYSE:PHI) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Strong-Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of PLDT (NYSE:PHI) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

PLDT Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE:PHI opened at $24.93 on Tuesday. PLDT has a 1 year low of $21.39 and a 1 year high of $30.39. The stock has a market cap of $5.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.33. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.56.

PLDT (NYSE:PHI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 13th. The technology company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter. PLDT had a net margin of 12.33% and a return on equity of 21.49%. The company had revenue of $923.00 million for the quarter. As a group, analysts anticipate that PLDT will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PLDT Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were given a $0.634 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This is a boost from PLDT’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.60. This represents a yield of 4.4%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PLDT

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of PLDT by 337.8% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 37,877 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $934,000 after purchasing an additional 29,225 shares during the period. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in shares of PLDT by 21.1% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 67,897 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,825,000 after acquiring an additional 11,847 shares during the period. Kathmere Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PLDT in the first quarter valued at approximately $258,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of PLDT by 10.9% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 93,479 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,296,000 after acquiring an additional 9,206 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PLDT by 194.8% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 13,883 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $341,000 after acquiring an additional 9,174 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.26% of the company’s stock.

About PLDT

PLDT Inc provides telecommunications and digital services in the Philippines. The company operates through three segments: Wireless, Fixed Line, and Others. It offers cellular mobile, Internet broadband distribution, operations support, software development, and satellite information and messaging services; and sells Wi-Fi access equipment.