Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Up 1%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shares were up 1% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $40.35 and last traded at $40.11. Approximately 4,463,739 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 19,615,260 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.72.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on VZ shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wolfe Research raised Verizon Communications from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $46.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Raymond James raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.50.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.8 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $40.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.16. The company has a market capitalization of $167.22 billion, a PE ratio of 14.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.41.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.08. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.67% and a return on equity of 20.71%. The business had revenue of $35.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.60 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.19 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be issued a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.69%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 96.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.33, for a total value of $604,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 59,201 shares in the company, valued at $2,387,576.33. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. MCF Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.7% during the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 12,625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $530,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Opinicus Capital Inc. increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.5% during the first quarter. Opinicus Capital Inc. now owns 33,452 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,404,000 after purchasing an additional 1,447 shares in the last quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.5% during the first quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. now owns 30,464 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,278,000 after purchasing an additional 2,383 shares in the last quarter. Weaver Consulting Group increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.7% during the first quarter. Weaver Consulting Group now owns 24,305 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,020,000 after purchasing an additional 1,948 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 14.0% during the first quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 35,253 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,479,000 after purchasing an additional 4,317 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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).