Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC Cuts Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC decreased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.1% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 230,131 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 4,862 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises 1.8% of Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $9,958,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sargent Investment Group LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 3.3% in the first quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 7,125 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $323,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. Crescent Sterling Ltd. raised its position in Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the first quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. now owns 30,906 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 80,178 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $3,637,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. raised its position in Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Finally, Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the second quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 21,255 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $920,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.65.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $43.21 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $43.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.38. The company has a market cap of $182.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.07, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.36. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $0.69 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 63.17%.

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).