Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 0.5% – Here’s Why

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shares traded down 0.5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $44.03 and last traded at $44.01. 2,426,265 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 18,103,279 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.23.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. DZ Bank raised 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. Argus upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. TD Cowen upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.11.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $184.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $41.20 and a 200-day moving average of $41.97.

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 in the prior year, the business earned $1.08 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued 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 6.18%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were 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 owns 6,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $262,809.20. This represents a 54.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. The trade was a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895 in the last ninety days. 0.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Chancellor Financial Group WB LP acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at about $901,000. 111 Capital acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $614,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 26.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,327,633 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $53,092,000 after buying an additional 276,891 shares during the last quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 813,067 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $32,515,000 after acquiring an additional 56,382 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $113,950,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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).