Eagle Ridge Investment Management Purchases 784 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Eagle Ridge Investment Management grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 0.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 641,656 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 784 shares during the period. Verizon Communications accounts for approximately 2.5% of Eagle Ridge Investment Management’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Eagle Ridge Investment Management’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $26,924,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 50.7% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 41,876 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,357,000 after purchasing an additional 14,090 shares in the last quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the third quarter worth about $212,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at approximately $12,713,000. Waverly Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 46.3% during the third quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 26,932 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $873,000 after acquiring an additional 8,526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hodges Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at approximately $631,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of 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 lowered their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $33.00 to $39.00 in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.14.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE VZ traded down $0.64 on Tuesday, reaching $41.10. 21,656,635 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,928,711. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $30.14 and a one year high of $43.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $173.00 billion, a PE ratio of 15.33, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.41. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $40.09.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced 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 firm had revenue of $33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.23 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The company’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.20 EPS. Analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 99.25%.

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).