Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 0.7% – What’s Next?

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) traded down 0.7% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $40.07 and last traded at $40.15. 4,919,212 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 18,541,686 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.44.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Raymond James increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Citigroup increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.7 %

The stock has a market cap of $172.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $43.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.41.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.22 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a $0.678 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.64%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 116.81%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc boosted its position 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 valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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).