Citigroup Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for TE Connectivity (NYSE:TEL) Stock

TE Connectivity (NYSE:TEL) had its price target upped by Citigroup from $160.00 to $165.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the electronics maker’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. HSBC downgraded TE Connectivity from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $137.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of TE Connectivity from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of TE Connectivity from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on TE Connectivity from $189.00 to $179.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on TE Connectivity from $153.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $161.09.

TE Connectivity Price Performance

TE Connectivity stock opened at $154.72 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $46.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $147.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $148.76. TE Connectivity has a 1 year low of $133.57 and a 1 year high of $159.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

TE Connectivity (NYSE:TEL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The electronics maker reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $3.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3,916,310.63 billion. TE Connectivity had a return on equity of 18.48% and a net margin of 20.15%. TE Connectivity’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that TE Connectivity will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current year.

TE Connectivity announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, October 30th that allows the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the electronics maker to reacquire up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On TE Connectivity

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of TEL. Piscataqua Savings Bank acquired a new position in TE Connectivity during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,534,000. Webster Bank N. A. acquired a new position in shares of TE Connectivity in the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in TE Connectivity by 68.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,915 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $440,000 after acquiring an additional 1,181 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management acquired a new stake in TE Connectivity during the 4th quarter worth about $353,000. Finally, Asio Capital LLC grew its stake in TE Connectivity by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Asio Capital LLC now owns 25,303 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $3,618,000 after purchasing an additional 1,411 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.43% of the company’s stock.

About TE Connectivity

TE Connectivity Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells connectivity and sensor solutions in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the AsiaPacific, and the Americas. The company operates through three segments: Transportation Solutions, Industrial Solutions, and Communications Solutions.