Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Up 0.6% – Here’s Why

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s share price was up 0.6% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $40.49 and last traded at $40.44. Approximately 3,674,942 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 12,781,669 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.21.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.51.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.8 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $170.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.47, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $41.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.83. 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 results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.22 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 116.81%.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 6.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 101,273,082 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,548,163,000 after purchasing an additional 5,936,009 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 4,520.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,815,534 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $216,266,000 after buying an additional 4,711,309 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $177,799,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 77.1% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 6,101,616 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $274,052,000 after acquiring an additional 2,656,396 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.2% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 95,824,245 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,289,054,000 after acquiring an additional 2,081,241 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).