Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 131,686 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,464 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,431,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 17,760 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $732,000 after buying an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 21,568 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $889,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Fermata Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 5,383 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. Private Portfolio Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Private Portfolio Partners LLC now owns 27,457 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,035,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.4% during the first quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,715 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $156,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. Scotiabank upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $42.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated 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 on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.78.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $41.50. The stock had a trading volume of 10,306,652 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,434,238. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $30.14 and a 1-year high of $43.42. The firm has a market cap of $174.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.54, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The business’s fifty day moving average is $40.71 and its 200-day moving average is $40.43.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The company had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.21 EPS. Verizon Communications’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.41%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio 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).