Empower Advisory Group LLC Reduces Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Empower Advisory Group LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 9.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,058,512 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 214,562 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $82,320,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VZ. Blue Chip Partners LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 70.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC now owns 9,142 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $366,000 after purchasing an additional 3,771 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 930,967 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $37,226,000 after buying an additional 49,619 shares in the last quarter. Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV now owns 43,791 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,751,000 after buying an additional 2,214 shares during the last quarter. Human Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $96,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 151.1% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,454 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $458,000 after acquiring an additional 6,893 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 6,590 shares in the company, valued at $262,809.20. This trade represents a 54.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders have sold a total of 39,085 shares of company stock valued at $1,582,995 in the last ninety days. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $41.00 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $45.36. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $39.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.58. The company has a market cap of $172.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.90, a PEG ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly 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 net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th were given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.61%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. KeyCorp downgraded Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wolfe Research increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.08.

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).