American Century Companies Inc. Grows Stake in United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM)

American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) by 8.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 327,931 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,369 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.39% of United States Cellular worth $18,305,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 17,739 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $737,000 after acquiring an additional 5,376 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 44.6% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,709 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $653,000 after acquiring an additional 4,846 shares during the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP lifted its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 12,598 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $523,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of United States Cellular during the 4th quarter worth $43,000. Finally, SageView Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of United States Cellular during the 4th quarter worth $310,000. 18.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at United States Cellular

In related news, EVP Kevin R. Lowell sold 37,597 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.34, for a total transaction of $1,855,035.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

United States Cellular Stock Performance

United States Cellular stock opened at $55.13 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a market capitalization of $4.69 billion, a PE ratio of 82.28 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.41. United States Cellular Co. has a twelve month low of $32.01 and a twelve month high of $60.14.

United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.06. United States Cellular had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 1.55%. The firm had revenue of $927.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $924.96 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.05 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that United States Cellular Co. will post 0.61 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

USM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of United States Cellular from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $38.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of United States Cellular from $51.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th.

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.