Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stake Reduced by MRA Advisory Group

MRA Advisory Group trimmed its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 8.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,421 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,264 shares during the quarter. MRA Advisory Group’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $603,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.4% during the second quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 17,760 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $732,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 54,926 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,240,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the period. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 21,568 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $889,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.0% in the second quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 5,383 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,715 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $156,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. Citigroup raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Eight research 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 stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.26.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ opened at $44.52 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $42.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.08. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $30.14 and a twelve month high of $45.36. 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 company has a market capitalization of $187.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.61, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts’ expectations of $33.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 101.12%.

About Verizon Communications

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).