Boston Common Asset Management LLC Sells 108,707 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Boston Common Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 19.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 442,312 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 108,707 shares during the quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $19,440,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Triad Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. Triad Wealth Partners LLC now owns 15,921 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $700,000 after buying an additional 2,303 shares in the last quarter. Register Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 12.2% in the third quarter. Register Financial Advisors LLC now owns 12,243 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $538,000 after acquiring an additional 1,327 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.2% during the third quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 94,197 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,140,000 after purchasing an additional 6,361 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 15,790 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 1,422 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $159,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on VZ. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.50 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. BNP Paribas Exane cut shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.25.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Verizon Communications stock opened at $39.24 on Thursday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.39 and a 52-week high of $47.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $40.44 and its 200 day moving average is $41.67. The company has a market cap of $165.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.39, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.34.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $33.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 12th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 12th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.0%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 58.97%.

Verizon Communications Profile

Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE: VZ) is a major U.S.-based telecommunications company that provides a broad range of communications and information services. Its operations span consumer and business markets, with core offerings that include wireless voice and data services, fixed-line broadband and fiber-optic services, and enterprise networking solutions. Verizon is headquartered in New York City and operates a nationwide wireless network that supports consumer subscribers as well as business and government customers.

The company’s consumer products include mobile phone plans, unlimited data services, and Fios, its branded fiber-optic internet, television and voice service for homes and small businesses.