Central Pacific Bank Trust Division Sells 8,060 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Central Pacific Bank Trust Division decreased its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 41.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,249 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 8,060 shares during the quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $450,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Denver PWM LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 762.6% during the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,061 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 938 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.1 %

VZ stock opened at $40.26 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $169.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.44. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.56 and a 12 month high of $45.36. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.83. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.22 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.73%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 116.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.51.

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).