UPDATE: CenturyLink Upgraded at JP Morgan, Dividend Yield Believed to be Sustainable

In a report published by JP Morgan, analyst Philip Cusick upgraded CenturyLink

from Neutral to Overweight and maintained a $38.00 price target. In the report, JP Morgan wrote, "We believe that CenturyLink's 6.2% dividend yield is sustainable, and attractive compared to Verizon's 4.2% and AT&T's 4.8%. We believe that the company has been active in buying back stock against its $2b authorization and will continue to do that rather than look to make a major acquisition. While it will take time to rebuild investor trust, we expect shares to grind higher through 2013 and act somewhat defensive in a market downturn. With improving revenue and EBITDA profile, relatively low leverage of 2.7x EBITDA, a solid and sustainable yield, and steady buyback we believe that CTL shares are among the most attractive of our traditional telecom stocks today." Shares of CenturyLink closed on Wednesday at $35.06.