Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-one research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $47.6471.

VZ has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $49.00 target price for the company. Finally, Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $43.53 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64. Verizon Communications has a fifty-two week low of $37.58 and a fifty-two week high of $47.35. The stock has a market cap of $183.54 billion, a PE ratio of 10.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.36. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $43.35 and a 200-day moving average of $43.40.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.15 EPS. Verizon Communications’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.3%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 63.17%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VZ. Kestra Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 121.8% in the 1st quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 176,531 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $8,007,000 after purchasing an additional 96,931 shares during the period. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $381,000. Element Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $2,799,000. Meyer Handelman Co. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 1,110,948 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $50,393,000 after buying an additional 76,083 shares during the period. Finally, Rempart Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 52.8% during the 1st quarter. Rempart Asset Management Inc. now owns 310,390 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $14,079,000 after buying an additional 107,200 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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).