MSH Capital Advisors LLC Invests $2.08 Million in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

MSH Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 52,090 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $2,083,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Argus upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.92.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE VZ opened at $44.47 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.59 and a 12 month high of $47.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $187.22 billion, a PE ratio of 10.74, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.09%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.46%.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total transaction of $319,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $262,809.20. This trade represents a 54.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications 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).