Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Up 0.4% – What’s Next?

by · The Cerbat Gem

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report)’s share price rose 0.4% on Friday . The company traded as high as $42.17 and last traded at $42.03. Approximately 2,147,299 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 18,523,094 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.86.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Scotiabank increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Bank of America increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. KeyCorp downgraded Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, 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 price target for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.37.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on VZ

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.1 %

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 $176.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $43.09 and its 200 day moving average is $41.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a $0.678 dividend. 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. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.47%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 101.12%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth $25,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the period. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the first quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

About Verizon Communications

(Get 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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