PLDT Inc. (NYSE:PHI) Short Interest Update

PLDT Inc. (NYSE:PHI) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 209,900 shares, an increase of 33.7% from the February 28th total of 157,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 69,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

PLDT Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of PHI stock traded down $0.25 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $21.89. 78,301 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 47,416. The company has a market cap of $4.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.68. PLDT has a 1-year low of $21.00 and a 1-year high of $29.05.

PLDT (NYSE:PHI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The technology company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter. PLDT had a net margin of 12.34% and a return on equity of 22.11%. The business had revenue of $960.62 million for the quarter. On average, research analysts anticipate that PLDT will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PLDT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be paid a $0.812 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a dividend yield of 5.4%. PLDT’s dividend payout ratio is 44.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of PLDT from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th.

Institutional Trading of PLDT

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of PLDT in the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in shares of PLDT in the third quarter worth approximately $79,000. Ascent Group LLC bought a new stake in PLDT in the third quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in PLDT by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 11,629 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 1,310 shares during the period. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new stake in PLDT during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $266,000. 2.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PLDT Company Profile

PLDT Inc provides telecommunications and digital services in the Philippines. The company operates through three segments: Wireless, Fixed Line, and Others. It offers cellular mobile, Internet broadband distribution, operations support, software development, and satellite information and messaging services; and sells Wi-Fi access equipment.