Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Down 0.3%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) dropped 0.3% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $38.75 and last traded at $38.81. Approximately 3,598,444 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 19,901,850 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.93.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded Verizon Communications from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $47.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.21.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.1 %

The company has a market capitalization of $163.70 billion, a PE ratio of 14.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.71. The company’s 50-day moving average is $40.32 and its 200 day moving average is $38.79.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The firm had revenue of $33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.20 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 24,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.80, for a total transaction of $979,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,436,200.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. WealthTrust Axiom LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. WealthTrust Axiom LLC now owns 118,806 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,479,000 after buying an additional 2,422 shares during the period. Portland Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 173.7% in the third quarter. Portland Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 652,169 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $21,137,000 after acquiring an additional 413,869 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 127,632 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $5,131,000 after acquiring an additional 1,616 shares during the last quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 6.2% in the third quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 51,757 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,677,000 after acquiring an additional 3,020 shares during the period. Finally, GFS Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth about $212,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

About Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and governmental entities worldwide. It operates in two segments, Verizon Consumer Group (Consumer) and Verizon Business Group (Business).