Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Acquired by Traphagen Investment Advisors LLC

Traphagen Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 42,781 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. Traphagen Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,921,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Fortis Group Advisors LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 1.9% in the third quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 22,512 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,011,000 after acquiring an additional 419 shares in the last quarter. Calton & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 189.0% in the 3rd quarter. Calton & Associates Inc. now owns 28,366 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,274,000 after purchasing an additional 18,551 shares in the last quarter. Krane Funds Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the third quarter worth approximately $510,000. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 18.3% in the third quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 174,072 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $7,818,000 after buying an additional 26,954 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.1% in the third quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 34,091 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,531,000 after buying an additional 1,019 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of several research reports. Raymond James raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.31.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 4.1 %

Shares of VZ traded down $1.80 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $41.90. 17,904,598 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,415,592. The company has a market cap of $176.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.63, a P/E/G ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42. 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 Inc. has a 12-month low of $31.26 and a 12-month high of $45.36. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $43.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.28.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. The firm 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast 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. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a $0.678 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 101.12%.

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).