Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Purchases 657,806 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3,905.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 674,649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 657,806 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises 0.7% of Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $30,298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased 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. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.26.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $43.00 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.62 and a fifty-two week high of $45.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.04, a PEG ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $42.59 and a 200 day moving average of $41.23.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.21 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a $0.678 dividend. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.31%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 101.12%.

About Verizon Communications

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).