Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 0.3% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) fell 0.3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $39.47 and last traded at $39.83. 4,404,007 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 18,447,057 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.94.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on VZ. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.51.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $42.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.87. The firm has a market cap of $167.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.44.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.81%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 116.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the 3rd 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 last quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 762.6% during the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,061 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 938 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently 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).