Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Up 1.5% – Still a Buy?

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) traded up 1.5% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $39.58 and last traded at $39.35. 6,778,517 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 22,023,303 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.78.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on VZ. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Raymond James upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. StockNews.com lowered Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Tigress Financial upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.54.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.6 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.68. The company has a market capitalization of $164.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.22 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 116.81%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the fourth quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the period. Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 655.5% during the fourth quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 967 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 839 shares during the period. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the third quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).