United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) was the target of a large decline in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 540,300 shares, a decline of 40.3% from the October 15th total of 904,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 162,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days. Currently, 3.6% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

United States Cellular Trading Down 3.1 %

NYSE:USM opened at $63.53 on Wednesday. United States Cellular has a 52-week low of $32.01 and a 52-week high of $68.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $58.12 and a 200 day moving average of $53.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $922.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $940.40 million. United States Cellular had a positive return on equity of 1.55% and a negative net margin of 0.79%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.26 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that United States Cellular will post 0.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United States Cellular

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of United States Cellular during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,238 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $396,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of United States Cellular by 8.7% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,475 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $696,000 after purchasing an additional 994 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC lifted its position in United States Cellular by 22.9% in the 3rd quarter. Innealta Capital LLC now owns 5,329 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 994 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in United States Cellular in the second quarter worth approximately $115,000. Institutional investors own 18.03% of the company’s stock.

United States Cellular Company Profile

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.