Clark & Stuart Inc Increases Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Clark & Stuart Inc boosted its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,225 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 314 shares during the quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $226,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 368,171,941 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $16,700,279,000 after acquiring an additional 4,347,416 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Verizon Communications by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 109,866,405 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,983,225,000 after purchasing an additional 1,172,175 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 303.9% in the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 49,859,967 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,261,648,000 after purchasing an additional 37,516,167 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.0% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,475,099 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,062,750,000 after purchasing an additional 431,789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 8.0% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 41,993,829 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,904,840,000 after buying an additional 3,100,342 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 5.0%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $41.49 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $43.63 and its 200 day moving average is $43.33. The company has a market cap of $174.94 billion, a PE ratio of 9.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.58 and a 1 year high of $47.35.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The business had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. The business’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. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.7%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on VZ shares. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Wall Street Zen cut Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.63.

About Verizon Communications

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).