United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) Short Interest Up 28.6% in January

United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 665,700 shares, an increase of 28.6% from the December 31st total of 517,700 shares. Approximately 4.5% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 142,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.7 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United States Cellular

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of USM. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in United States Cellular by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 143,021 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $7,816,000 after purchasing an additional 31,934 shares during the period. Mariner Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United States Cellular in the fourth quarter valued at $1,944,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of United States Cellular by 34.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 52,688 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $2,879,000 after buying an additional 13,467 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 262.8% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 17,275 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $1,083,000 after buying an additional 12,513 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its position in United States Cellular by 13.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 106,343 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $5,812,000 after buying an additional 12,219 shares during the period. 18.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United States Cellular Price Performance

USM traded down $0.14 during trading on Thursday, reaching $63.66. The stock had a trading volume of 81,125 shares, compared to its average volume of 115,954. United States Cellular has a 1-year low of $32.01 and a 1-year high of $68.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $62.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $58.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -176.82 and a beta of 0.48.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James upgraded United States Cellular from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $86.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on United States Cellular from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company 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 note on Wednesday.

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.