The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms.
Carrier
–Robert W. Baird upped its price target and estimates on Telephone & Data Systems after the company reported first-quarter results. The company’s new price target is $62, up from $61. New estimates for 2007 are revenues of $3.8 billion rather than $3.71 billion and EPS of $3.85 rather than $2.31. Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services affirmed TDS’ ratings and subsidiary United States Cellular Corp., including the BB+ corporate credit rating, and removed the company from CreditWatch.
–Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services assigned its BBB rating to Sprint Nextel Corp.‘s $750 million senior unsecured floating-rate notes due 2010. The firm also affirmed all other ratings on the company.
–Lehman Brothers downgraded Alltel Corp. to equal weight from overweight but increased its price target to $71.50 from $70 to reflect the carrier’s pending acquisition by a private equity consortium.
–Credit Suisse First Boston raised its price target on Vodafone Group plc.
Handset and infrastructure vendors
–Lehman Brothers lowered its estimates on Motorola Inc. to 13 cents from 16 cents for 2007 and to 65 cents from 77 cents for 2008.
–Lehman Brothers raised its price target on Research In Motion Ltd. to $175 from $160 on expectations for strengthening net adds and unit sales. Credit Suisse First Boston raised its price target on the company to $170 from $145 on continued strong demand. The firm also raised its estimates on the company to $4.75 billion from $4.67 billion for 2007 and to $6.12 billion from $5.92 billion for 2008. EPS estimates increase to $4.89 from $4.82 for 2007 and to $6.30 from $6.13 for 2008.
Other
–Lehman Brothers lowered its price target on Openwave Systems Inc. to $6.30 from $7.50 based on an upcoming cash distribution of $1.20.
–RW Baird lowered its estimates on PCTEL Inc. after the company announced plans to exit the UMTS antenna business.
