Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Receives $46.54 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seventeen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $46.54.

Several research analysts have commented on VZ shares. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Tigress Financial raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target for the company.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Fermata Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 5,626 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $253,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Austin Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.0% during the third quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,450 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in Verizon Communications by 0.4% in the second quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 54,926 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,240,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $343,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the period. Finally, Wynn Capital LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 5,945 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE VZ opened at $38.86 on Wednesday. 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 has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $45.36. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $41.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.69. The company has a market cap of $163.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.46.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.22 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.97%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 116.81%.

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).