UPDATE: JP Morgan Downgrades DIRECTV to Neutral on Buyback Outlook

JP Morgan reduced its rating on DIRECTV

from Overweight to Neutral and maintained its $58 price target. JP Morgan said, "We are downgrading the shares of DirecTV from Overweight to Neutral, as we find the outlook on shareholder returns less compelling for 2013 and beyond. We expect lower buybacks from DTV by 40-50% in 2013 from 2012 levels, and model $2.8bn in share buybacks for 2013 vs $5.2bn in 2012 and $5.5bn in 2011. Moreover, the fundamentals of the business leave little to get us excited in the near term, as we believe subscriber trends in the US are decelerating, the Latin America business shows declining ARPU from middle market dilution, and Latam cash flow repatriation remains hard." DIRECTV closed at $52.80 on Monday.