Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Down 0.6% – Here’s Why

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) traded down 0.6% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $41.80 and last traded at $42.00. 1,971,788 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 18,516,770 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.25.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. UBS Group raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Raymond James raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.7 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $42.95 and a 200-day moving average of $41.50. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $177.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.43.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a $0.678 dividend. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 116.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by 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).