Delta Financial Group Inc. Lowers Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Delta Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 9.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 80,335 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 7,927 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises about 0.8% of Delta Financial Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Delta Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,213,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 39,418 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,576,000 after buying an additional 401 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Family Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $361,000. Cabot Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Cabot Wealth Management Inc. now owns 216,467 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $8,657,000 after acquiring an additional 7,836 shares during the period. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 86,699 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $3,467,000 after acquiring an additional 1,967 shares during the period. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 130,047 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $5,201,000 after acquiring an additional 2,742 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $42.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $180.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.33, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.45. The business’s 50 day moving average is $39.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.62. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $45.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.34%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on VZ. TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Argus upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. DZ Bank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $47.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total value of $453,154.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $596,439.20. This represents a 43.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 39,085 shares of company stock valued at $1,582,995 over the last quarter. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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).