Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) Sets New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Telefonica Brasil S.A. (NYSE:VIV) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $14.73 and last traded at $14.6850, with a volume of 302061 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $14.28.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VIV has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Telefonica Brasil in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $14.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $12.00 target price on Telefonica Brasil in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $14.50 price target on shares of Telefonica Brasil in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Telefonica Brasil from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Telefonica Brasil from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.12.

Telefonica Brasil Stock Up 2.1%

The stock has a market capitalization of $23.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.70. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $12.59 and its 200-day moving average is $12.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Telefonica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 14th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter. Telefonica Brasil had a return on equity of 8.67% and a net margin of 10.37%.The company had revenue of $2.81 billion during the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Telefonica Brasil S.A. will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Telefonica Brasil

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VIV. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in Telefonica Brasil by 337.7% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 4,233 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 3,266 shares during the period. Westfuller Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Telefonica Brasil during the 3rd quarter worth $59,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Telefonica Brasil by 214.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,766 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 3,248 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Telefonica Brasil by 543.7% in the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,918 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 4,154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Telefonica Brasil by 45.7% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,163 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 1,619 shares during the last quarter. 5.16% of the stock is 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.