Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Up 0.5% – What’s Next?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s stock price shot up 0.5% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $40.85 and last traded at $40.76. 2,752,350 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 18,528,336 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.57.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $43.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.37. The firm has a market cap of $170.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The firm had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a $0.678 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.70%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 116.81%.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc increased its position in Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the 3rd quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is 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).