Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Up 1.7%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) was up 1.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $41.54 and last traded at $41.51. Approximately 3,597,355 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 18,741,143 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.82.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on VZ shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.77.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $173.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The business’s 50-day moving average is $40.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.99.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.23 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.20 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.45%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 99.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,882,164,000. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 127.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,801,067 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $821,900,000 after acquiring an additional 12,220,777 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 92.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 22,599,173 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $851,989,000 after acquiring an additional 10,882,873 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth approximately $250,312,000. Finally, Third Point LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $173,325,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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).