Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading 1.3% Higher – Time to Buy?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shares shot up 1.3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $43.97 and last traded at $43.86. 5,501,624 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 22,700,609 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.32.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research lifted 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. Argus upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Tigress Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.08.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.7 %

The company’s 50-day moving average is $39.95 and its 200 day moving average is $41.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $183.56 billion, a PE ratio of 10.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.08 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 65.46%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total value of $810,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 45,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,851,664.50. The trade was a 30.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 39,085 shares of company stock worth $1,582,995 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% during the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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).