Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stake Cut by RFG Advisory LLC

by · The Cerbat Gem

RFG Advisory LLC lessened its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Free Report) by 4.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 92,698 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 4,454 shares during the quarter. RFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,163,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the 1st quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2,159.1% in the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 994 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 950 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Raymond James lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Bank of America lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.26.

View Our Latest Report on VZ

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ opened at $43.85 on Friday. 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 market cap of $184.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.36, a P/E/G ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.28. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.99 and a fifty-two week high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.21 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a $0.678 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 101.12%.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

(Free Report)

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).

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