Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading 1.2% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) traded up 1.2% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $43.34 and last traded at $43.35. 4,145,085 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 17,666,222 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.84.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on VZ shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Wolfe Research boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 target price for the company. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.11.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 3.1 %

The company has a market capitalization of $185.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.67, a P/E/G 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. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $40.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.77.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results 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 last year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.13%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total transaction of $319,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $262,809.20. This trade represents a 54.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Swedbank AB raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,174,541 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $232,389,000 after buying an additional 39,403 shares during the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $343,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the period. Hanlon Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth about $208,000. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 26.3% in the 3rd quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 13,098 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $588,000 after purchasing an additional 2,730 shares during the period. Finally, Crescent Grove Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 124.1% during the 3rd quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC now owns 37,517 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,685,000 after purchasing an additional 20,778 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).