O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Trims Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 13.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,500,964 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 240,293 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $60,024,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% during the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In related news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $319,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $262,809.20. This trade represents a 54.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.0 %

NYSE:VZ opened at $44.96 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $189.25 billion, a PE ratio of 10.86, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The business’s 50 day moving average is $42.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.59 and a 52 week high of $47.36.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.03%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $45.00 price target (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.71.

About Verizon Communications

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).