Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the seventeen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $46.37.

Several research analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $42.13 on Friday. Verizon Communications has a 1 year low of $34.67 and a 1 year high of $45.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $177.34 billion, a PE ratio of 15.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $43.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.33.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.22 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications 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 6.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.12%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Financial Strategies Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.2% in the third quarter. Financial Strategies Group Inc. now owns 178,415 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $7,706,000 after acquiring an additional 7,220 shares during the last quarter. Bensler LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth about $212,000. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC now owns 46,063 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,069,000 after purchasing an additional 3,099 shares during the last quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 25.5% in the 3rd quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,401 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $557,000 after purchasing an additional 2,522 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lewis Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Lewis Asset Management LLC now owns 21,345 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $959,000 after purchasing an additional 607 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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).