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

Shares of Telefonica Brasil S.A. (NYSE:VIV) have been assigned an average rating of “Reduce” from the eleven research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $14.36.

A number of research firms recently commented on VIV. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Telefonica Brasil from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Barclays set a $16.50 price target on shares of Telefonica Brasil and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of Telefonica Brasil from $15.70 to $15.40 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. New Street Research raised shares of Telefonica Brasil from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Bradesco Corretora cut Telefonica Brasil to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th.

Telefonica Brasil Trading Down 2.2%

NYSE VIV opened at $13.19 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.82, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.56. Telefonica Brasil has a one year low of $10.10 and a one year high of $17.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business’s fifty day moving average is $15.23 and its 200-day moving average is $14.31.

Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $2.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.98 billion. Telefonica Brasil had a return on equity of 9.32% and a net margin of 10.49%. Equities research analysts predict that Telefonica Brasil will post 0.97 EPS for the current year.

Telefonica Brasil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 21st. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd will be paid a $0.4562 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 22nd. Telefonica Brasil’s payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Telefonica Brasil

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VIV. AdvisorShares Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Telefonica Brasil during the third quarter worth $1,066,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Telefonica Brasil during the third quarter valued at about $1,185,000. Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Telefonica Brasil during the third quarter valued at about $2,173,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in shares of Telefonica Brasil by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 17,145,564 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $203,346,000 after buying an additional 145,449 shares during the period. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in shares of Telefonica Brasil during the fourth quarter valued at about $4,211,000. 5.16% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.