Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Down 0.1%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shares traded down 0.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $39.21 and last traded at $39.29. 2,683,011 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 19,740,373 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on VZ shares. Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised Verizon Communications from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $36.00 to $47.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Barclays increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company cut 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 note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Raymond James upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.21.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $165.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $40.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.95.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly 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 return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 8.44%. The company had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.78%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 24,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.80, for a total value of $979,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,436,200.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VZ. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 627.8% during the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 130.1% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 50.4% in the 1st quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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).