Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Acquires 506,538 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 25.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,517,074 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 506,538 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications accounts for approximately 1.0% of Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. owned 0.06% of Verizon Communications worth $103,804,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Campbell Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at approximately $241,000. Perritt Capital Management Inc raised its position in Verizon Communications by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Perritt Capital Management Inc now owns 7,734 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $319,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 13,127,360 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $541,372,000 after acquiring an additional 936,823 shares in the last quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. now owns 178,391 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $7,357,000 after acquiring an additional 5,272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 45.3% in the 2nd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 13,907 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $574,000 after acquiring an additional 4,335 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ opened at $43.75 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $184.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.32, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $41.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.58. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $30.14 and a twelve month high of $43.82.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. Verizon Communications’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.21 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.57 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.20%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 101.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VZ. 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 Monday. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, KeyCorp reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.66.

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).