Avalon Capital Management Purchases 800 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Avalon Capital Management increased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 7.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,052 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. Avalon Capital Management’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $456,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Vima LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of Verizon Communications stock traded up $0.33 during trading on Friday, hitting $41.20. The stock had a trading volume of 11,747,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,484,035. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $30.14 and a 12 month high of $43.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $40.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.44. The stock has a market cap of $173.42 billion, a PE ratio of 15.32, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.41.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.46%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Scotiabank upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.78.

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).