Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report)’s share price traded down 0.2% on Wednesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $40.27 and last traded at $40.32. 5,544,674 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 24,414,332 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.40.
Specifically, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total value of $810,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 45,675 shares in the company, valued at $1,851,664.50. This represents a 30.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target for the company. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.08.
Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.4 %
The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $40.79 and a 200-day moving average of $41.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $169.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.46.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.73%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 116.81%.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 137.6% in the 3rd quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.
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).
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