Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV Reduces Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV lessened its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 243 shares during the period. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $840,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at $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 acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its position 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 during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ traded down $0.77 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $41.36. 16,682,363 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,606,289. The company’s 50-day moving average is $43.17 and its 200 day moving average is $41.34. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $35.31 and a 52 week high of $45.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $174.11 billion, a PE ratio of 17.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The firm’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.22 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a dividend of $0.678 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.56%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 116.81%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Citigroup increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. UBS Group raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.37.

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).