Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Down 0.6%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shares fell 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $38.94 and last traded at $38.97. 2,656,126 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 19,914,582 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.20.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $37.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.21.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.1 %

The business has a 50 day moving average of $40.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $163.70 billion, a PE ratio of 14.51, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.71.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The business had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.84%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 9th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.33, for a total value of $604,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 59,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,387,576.33. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 627.8% during the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 130.1% in the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 488 shares during the period. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. raised its position in Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the 1st quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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).