Caxton Associates LP Trims Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Caxton Associates LP cut its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 27.0% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 12,829 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 4,741 shares during the quarter. Caxton Associates LP’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $529,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE:VZ opened at $44.61 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $30.14 and a 52-week high of $45.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.88. The company has a market capitalization of $187.77 billion, a PE ratio of 16.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.42.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.08%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 101.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. KeyCorp cut their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Raymond James increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.09.

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).