Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading 0.1% Higher – Still a Buy?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shares traded up 0.1% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $38.99 and last traded at $38.96. 22,820,763 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 4% from the average session volume of 23,830,014 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.92.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. UBS Group increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com lowered Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Tigress Financial increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.54.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $159.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The business has a 50-day moving average of $41.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.79.

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

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.17%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 137.6% during 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. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 69.6% during the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 762.6% during the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,061 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 938 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).