Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) were down 2.6% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $42.85 and last traded at $42.96. Approximately 3,229,101 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 18,581,199 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.11.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
VZ has been the subject of several recent research reports. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. KeyCorp cut their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.26.
Get Our Latest Report on Verizon Communications
Verizon Communications Stock Down 2.6 %
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The company had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.21 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.
Verizon Communications Increases Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.31%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 101.12%.
Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications
A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 8.7% during the third quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC now owns 6,905 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $304,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the period. Wynn Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 5,945 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 360.1% in the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 34,227 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,537,000 after acquiring an additional 26,788 shares during the last quarter. Iowa State Bank grew its position in Verizon Communications by 12.5% in the third quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 55,026 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,471,000 after acquiring an additional 6,104 shares during the period. Finally, Freestate Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the third quarter worth $481,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.
Verizon Communications Company Profile
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).
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