Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Down 0.1%

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) were down 0.1% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $40.28 and last traded at $40.46. Approximately 3,274,875 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 18,804,760 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.52.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on VZ shares. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.68.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market cap of $172.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $40.60 and its 200 day moving average is $40.47.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Lee Financial Group Hawaii Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Lee Financial Group Hawaii Inc. now owns 15,517 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $585,000 after acquiring an additional 2,104 shares during the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 21.3% during the fourth quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 41,775 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,575,000 after buying an additional 7,333 shares in the last quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 1,201,066 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $45,280,000 after buying an additional 128,600 shares in the last quarter. Towerpoint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $206,000. Finally, Trust Point Inc. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $1,557,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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).