Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) was down 0.2% on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $40.27 and last traded at $40.32. Approximately 5,544,674 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 24,414,332 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.40.
Specifically, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total value of $810,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 45,675 shares in the company, valued at $1,851,664.50. This represents a 30.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several brokerages recently issued reports on VZ. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $47.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.08.
Verizon Communications Stock Down 2.0 %
The company has a market cap of $166.13 billion, a PE ratio of 17.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.60. 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 – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company earned $1.08 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.87%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 116.81%.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. MOKAN Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth about $589,000. Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd. now owns 493,100 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $19,719,000 after acquiring an additional 3,700 shares during the last quarter. Hourglass Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Hourglass Capital LLC now owns 41,720 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,668,000 after acquiring an additional 3,740 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 54,938 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,197,000 after purchasing an additional 1,704 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $501,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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).
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