Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Down 0.9% – Should You Sell?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s stock price fell 0.9% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $42.50 and last traded at $42.48. Approximately 3,720,698 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 17,681,814 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.87.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. DZ Bank raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Wolfe Research upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.11.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $40.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.79. The company has a market cap of $194.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.14, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.45.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.87%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.46%.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total transaction of $319,040.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $262,809.20. The trade was a 54.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aegis Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth $268,000. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL now owns 24,252 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $970,000 after buying an additional 2,100 shares during the period. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth $381,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth about $192,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $128,434,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently 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).