Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stock Holdings Lessened by Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. reduced its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 121,731 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 16,230 shares during the quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,020,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at $2,015,000. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 40,490 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,670,000 after purchasing an additional 629 shares in the last quarter. Excalibur Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 100,906 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,161,000 after buying an additional 3,630 shares during the last quarter. Luts & Greenleigh Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at about $221,000. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3,968.9% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 453,558 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $18,705,000 after buying an additional 442,411 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $42.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.66.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $45.00 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $30.14 and a 12 month high of $45.05. The company has a market cap of $189.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.79, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s 50 day moving average is $41.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion for 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.21 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.678 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.03%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.12%.

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).