Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Grows Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 7.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,286,438 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 295,132 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises about 0.6% of Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $188,389,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Advantage Trust Co boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 549.5% during the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 591 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 95.3% during the third quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 739.5% in the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 222.2% in the second quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 725 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RMG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on VZ shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Barclays assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.50 to $51.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.93.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $39.70 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.39 and a 1 year high of $47.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $40.31 and a 200 day moving average of $41.58. The stock has a market cap of $167.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.34.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.02. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The business had revenue of $33.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.19 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 12th will be paid a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 12th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.97%.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE: VZ) is a major U.S.-based telecommunications company that provides a broad range of communications and information services. Its operations span consumer and business markets, with core offerings that include wireless voice and data services, fixed-line broadband and fiber-optic services, and enterprise networking solutions. Verizon is headquartered in New York City and operates a nationwide wireless network that supports consumer subscribers as well as business and government customers.

The company’s consumer products include mobile phone plans, unlimited data services, and Fios, its branded fiber-optic internet, television and voice service for homes and small businesses.