Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Price Target Raised to $47.50

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) had its price target hoisted by equities researchers at Scotiabank from $47.00 to $47.50 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “sector perform” rating on the cell phone carrier’s stock. Scotiabank’s price target indicates a potential upside of 17.46% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. StockNews.com cut Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Wolfe Research upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.44.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $40.44 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.61. The stock has a market cap of $170.23 billion, a PE ratio of 17.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.46. Verizon Communications has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $45.36. 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 earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Verizon Communications will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Fermata Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.5% in the third quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 5,626 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $253,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,450 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $379,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.4% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $343,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the period. Wynn Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.4% during the third quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 5,945 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Western Financial Corp CA boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.5% in the third quarter. Western Financial Corp CA now owns 17,491 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $786,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by 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).