Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC

Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,203 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 540 shares during the period. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $638,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth about $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 137.6% in the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the 1st quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.6 %

NYSE:VZ opened at $42.17 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $177.50 billion, a PE ratio of 15.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $43.01 and a 200-day moving average of $41.28. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.97 and a 52 week high of $45.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The business’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.678 per share. 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. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.43%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 101.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.31.

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).