Sweeney & Michel LLC Invests $4.22 Million in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Sweeney & Michel LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 104,326 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $4,224,000. Verizon Communications makes up about 1.9% of Sweeney & Michel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 627.8% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 130.1% in the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the period. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 50.4% in the first quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.0 %

VZ traded up $0.01 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $40.04. The company had a trading volume of 16,086,994 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,871,701. The company has a market cap of $168.55 billion, a PE ratio of 14.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50-day moving average of $40.58 and a 200-day moving average of $40.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.60. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $30.14 and a 1-year high of $43.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.21 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be issued a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.64%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 99.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on VZ shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.68.

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).