Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Receives $46.37 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $46.37.

Several research firms have weighed in on VZ. Bank of America lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. KeyCorp cut shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $44.34 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market cap of $186.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.11, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $42.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.69. Verizon Communications has a one year low of $36.46 and a one year high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The company had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications will post 4.61 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a $0.678 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.12%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 116.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth $354,000. Waverly Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 59.8% during the first quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 37,433 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,571,000 after buying an additional 14,012 shares during the period. Bayesian Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $860,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 45.5% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,453,075 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $144,875,000 after buying an additional 1,080,244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 275,030 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $11,530,000 after acquiring an additional 40,045 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Company 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).