Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Kovack Advisors Inc.

Kovack Advisors Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 48,378 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 3,497 shares during the quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,173,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% in the 3rd quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 450 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth about $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 2.2 %

VZ stock traded up $0.87 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $41.27. 4,470,886 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,531,035. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $43.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.41. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $35.81 and a 12-month high of $45.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $173.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a dividend of $0.678 per share. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.57%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on VZ shares. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. KeyCorp cut shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.37.

Verizon Communications 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).