Wendell David Associates Inc. Sells 1,043 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Wendell David Associates Inc. lessened its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,574 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,043 shares during the quarter. Wendell David Associates Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,669,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, EQ Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VZ. Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.63.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE:VZ opened at $40.56 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $170.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.45, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $47.35. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $43.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.09. 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 (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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. 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 6.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.34%.

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).