Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Up 0.3% – Here’s What Happened

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s stock price rose 0.3% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $43.88 and last traded at $43.75. Approximately 1,948,524 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 20,085,421 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.61.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. DZ Bank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI raised Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.41.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.63. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $43.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.98. The stock has a market cap of $184.04 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $33.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. On average, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.21%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.52%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total transaction of $396,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 10,008 shares in the company, valued at $441,352.80. This represents a 47.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $633,159.61. The trade was a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,500 shares of company stock worth $1,376,300 in the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,062,347 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $42,483,000 after purchasing an additional 11,605 shares during the last quarter. Graypoint LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 32,586 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,303,000 after buying an additional 897 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 912,730 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $36,500,000 after buying an additional 55,206 shares in the last quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,762 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $510,000 after buying an additional 1,669 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crescent Sterling Ltd. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. now owns 30,671 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,227,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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).