Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by CWS Financial Advisors LLC

CWS Financial Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,092 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 315 shares during the quarter. CWS Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $633,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc grew its position in Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the period. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at about $44,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on VZ. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $44.38 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $42.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.66. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $36.46 and a 52-week high of $45.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $186.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.13, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The firm had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a dividend of $0.678 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.11%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 116.81%.

Verizon Communications Profile

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).