# Telephone and Data Systems Inc. (TDS) fundamentals

Data as of 2026-09-08. NYSE, United States. Sector: Communication Services / Diversified Telecommunication Services. Price $37.83, market value $4.4 billion.

## Valuation
- **P/E (trailing): 9.5×** (5-yr avg 17.6×). Telephone and Data Systems Inc. trades at 9.5× trailing earnings, well below its own five-year average of 17.6×: cheap by its own standards. The Communication Services median in the September 2026 study was 21.1×.
- **Price / sales: 20.0×**. Each dollar of revenue is priced at 20.0×, a level that requires very high margins or very fast growth to justify.
- **Price / book: 0.9×**. The shares trade below book value, which can signal a bargain or a balance sheet the market doubts.
- **EV / EBITDA: 10.5×**. Enterprise value is 10.5× operating earnings before depreciation, the multiple that ignores how the company is financed.
- **Free-cash-flow yield: -8.4%** (5-yr avg 9.4%). Free cash flow is negative: the business is consuming cash, which is normal for heavy investment phases but a warning otherwise.
- **Earnings yield: 10.6%**. The inverse of the P/E: 10.6% of the price is earned each year.

## Profitability
- **Operating margin: 190.0%**. 190.0% of revenue is left after running the business, an exceptional level.
- **Net margin: -0.6%**. The company reported a net loss over the last twelve months.
- **Return on equity: -0.1%**. Return on equity is negative because earnings are negative.
- **Return on invested capital: 6.7%**. Return on all capital, debt included, is 6.7%.
- **Return on assets: 5.0%**. Each dollar of assets produces 5.0% of profit.

## Growth
- **Revenue growth (1 yr): -9.0%** (3-yr -41.3%/yr, 5-yr -26.9%/yr). Revenue fell 9.0% over the last year, against -26.9% a year compounded over five years: growth is accelerating.
- **EPS growth (1 yr): 23.5%**. Earnings per share rose 23.5%, faster than revenue, so margins expanded or the share count shrank.

## Financial health
- **Debt to equity: 0.17**. Debt is 0.17 times equity: a conservative balance sheet.
- **Net debt / EBITDA: 0.1×**. It would take 0.1 years of operating earnings to repay net borrowings, within the comfortable range.
- **Current ratio: 2.10** (quick 2.10). Current assets cover the next year's liabilities 2.10 times.
- **Piotroski F-score: 6/9**. 6 of 9 checks pass: mixed.

## Dividends
- **Dividend yield: 0.42%** ($0.16 per share, trailing). Telephone and Data Systems Inc. yields 0.42%, a modest yield more typical of a growth-oriented payer.
- **Dividend growth (5 yr): -25.1%/yr** (1-yr -48.4%). The dividend has not grown over five years.

## Analyst view
- **Analyst consensus: buy** (2 analysts). 2 analysts cover Telephone and Data Systems Inc.; the consensus is buy, with an average price target of $47.50 (+26% from the current price). Analyst opinion is shown for context; it is not part of the Fundamental Score.

## Price and momentum
- **Total return (1 yr): -3.8%** (YTD -7.6%, 3-mo -3.3%). The shares are down 3.8% over twelve months including dividends.
- **From 52-week high: -23.0%** (20.1% above the low). Trading 23% below its 52-week high.
- **200-day average: below**. The price sits below its 200-day moving average, the usual definition of a downtrend.
- **RSI (14-day): 67**. An RSI of 67 is neutral.
- **Beta (1 yr): 0.59** (volatility 29%). Beta of 0.59 against the S&P 500: the shares move much less than the market.

Live score and charts: https://foliofundamentals.com/analyzer?s=TDS · Page: https://foliofundamentals.com/stocks/tds

Not investment advice.