Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Up 0.1% – Here’s Why

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shot up 0.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $38.99 and last traded at $38.96. 22,820,763 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 4% from the average session volume of 23,830,014 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.92.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VZ. Bank of America raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 target price on the stock. Tigress Financial raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.54.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market cap of $164.01 billion, a PE ratio of 16.79, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.46.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The firm had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. First Hawaiian Bank raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 31,672 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,267,000 after buying an additional 2,267 shares in the last quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 21,642 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $865,000 after purchasing an additional 1,294 shares during the period. InvesTrust bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,956,000. Rempart Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 29.1% in the 4th quarter. Rempart Asset Management Inc. now owns 203,190 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $8,126,000 after buying an additional 45,790 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legend Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).