Natural Investments LLC Has $504,000 Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Natural Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 15.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,666 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 1,553 shares during the quarter. Natural Investments LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $504,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. grew its position in Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $49.00 target price on the stock. Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.63.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of VZ opened at $39.86 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $47.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $168.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.29, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $43.48 and a 200-day moving average of $43.25.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.9%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 63.17%.

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).