UPDATE: HSBC Downgrades AT&T

Shares of

have moved higher 0.61 percent to $34.67 in Tuesday's session after HSBC downgraded the stock from Overweight to Neutral and lowered the price target from $39 to $35. Analyst Richard Dineen believes the industry's margins may contract from 6.8 percent growth in 2013 to 5.6 percent growth in 2014, due to increased pricing competition. Increased price competition will hurt AT&T more than Verizon, as Verizon is considered a “quality leader” by consumers, the analyst said. The potential Sprint and T-Mobile deal is facing “considerable antitrust hurdles” due to the current status of industry competition, Dineen said. The analyst reiterated his Overweight rating on Verizon and Neutral rating on Sprint. Shares of Verizon are down 0.27 percent to $46.90 at last check.