Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Zions Bancorporation N.A.

Zions Bancorporation N.A. reduced its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 264,772 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 7,872 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications makes up 0.9% of Zions Bancorporation N.A.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Zions Bancorporation N.A.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.4% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the second quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 21,568 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $889,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 5,383 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.4% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, BCS Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. BCS Wealth Management now owns 11,141 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $459,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.66.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ opened at $43.86 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $30.14 and a 52-week high of $43.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $184.62 billion, a PE ratio of 16.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.42. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $41.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.21 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.18%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 101.12%.

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).