5 Best Passive Income Stocks in 2021

4. AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 63

Texas-based telecommunications company AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) ranks 4th in our list of 10 best passive income stocks in 2021. The company was founded in 1983 and has over 182.56 million active subscribers. AT&T Inc. has a 30-year history of increasing dividends. However, early this month, the company announced plans of resizing its dividends following the completion of the WarnerMedia spin-off. Despite the dividend cut, the company believes AT&T Inc. will continue to pay out a “really high dividend” with a yield in the 95th percentile among dividend payers.

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) posted its revenue of $8.5 billion in the first quarter of 2021, up 9.8% from the same period of 2020. T shares currently trade for $29.61 and have a P/E of 9.16. The current dividend yield is 7.07%. The 52-week price range of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is $26.35-33.88. Shares of T jumped 3% in the last three months.

There were 63 hedge funds that reported owning stakes in AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) at the end of the first quarter, up from 58 funds a quarter earlier. The total value of these stakes at the end of Q1 is $2.70 billion.

Nelson Capital Management mentioned AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) in its Q1 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:

“Nelson Capital stayed busy i n t he first quarter, making several adjustments within our core portfolio. In the communication services sector, we sold AT&T (tkr: T). Over the years, AT&T has made several poor acquisitions, especially in the content realm, leaving the company saddled with debt and unable to change directions.”