Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Trust Co. of Vermont

Trust Co. of Vermont cut its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 112,100 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 7,602 shares during the quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,483,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 69.6% during the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Accordant Advisory Group Inc increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the 3rd 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 period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 244.1% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 1,115 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 791 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE VZ traded up $0.52 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $38.86. 23,987,092 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,659,684. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $41.06 and a 200-day moving average of $41.71. The stock has a market cap of $163.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.46. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $45.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The firm had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.97%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 116.81%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.54.

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).