GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC Has $2.88 Million Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 69,859 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,266 shares during the period. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,881,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 50.4% in the 1st quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on VZ. Scotiabank increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Tigress Financial increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.78.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.3 %

Verizon Communications stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $40.89. 10,930,551 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,745,074. The firm has a market capitalization of $172.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.22, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.41. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.14 and a fifty-two week high of $43.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $40.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.49.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.21 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 99.25%.

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).