Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading 1.2% Higher – Here’s What Happened

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s share price traded up 1.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $41.63 and last traded at $41.69. 3,800,538 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 22,585,961 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.20.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VZ. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. 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 report on Wednesday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Argus upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.08.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.58. The firm has a market cap of $176.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.11, a PEG ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th were given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio 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 that occurred 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 39,085 shares of company stock valued at $1,582,995 in the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).