Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 0.1%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s stock price fell 0.1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $44.53 and last traded at $44.60. 1,960,843 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 18,816,078 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.66.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on VZ. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of 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 lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.03.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $41.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $188.04 billion, a PE ratio of 16.64, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.42. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.21 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a $0.678 dividend. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.07%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 99.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 127.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,801,067 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $821,900,000 after purchasing an additional 12,220,777 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 92.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 22,599,173 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $851,989,000 after purchasing an additional 10,882,873 shares during the period. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth $250,312,000. Third Point LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $173,325,000. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its position in Verizon Communications by 419.8% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 5,141,257 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $193,825,000 after acquiring an additional 4,152,099 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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).