Ignite Planners LLC Sells 8,903 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Ignite Planners LLC reduced its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 20.4% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 34,787 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 8,903 shares during the quarter. Ignite Planners LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,471,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 627.8% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 130.1% in the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the period. Finally, Vima LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of VZ stock traded up $0.91 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $41.15. 20,767,716 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,887,566. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.14 and a 12-month high of $43.42. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $39.96. The company has a market capitalization of $173.21 billion, a PE ratio of 15.35, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The company had revenue of $33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.20 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.46%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 99.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 4th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.77.

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).