Anchor Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Anchor Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.9% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 118,052 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 2,241 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,868,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Vima LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $45.04 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $189.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.81, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $30.14 and a 12 month high of $45.36. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $42.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.21 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.02%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 101.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on VZ. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Raymond James increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.26.

Verizon Communications 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).