Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Acquired by Gables Capital Management Inc.

Gables Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,973 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 634 shares during the period. Gables Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,519,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in VZ. Miller Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,392,000. Global View Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $315,000. Cornerstone Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 176,000 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $7,038,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares in the last quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 14,901 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $596,000 after purchasing an additional 1,255 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Davis R M Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 34,397 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,376,000 after purchasing an additional 2,141 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $46.55 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $195.94 billion, a PE ratio of 11.24, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.59 and a twelve month high of $47.36. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.88.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.82%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VZ. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lifted their price objective 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. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. 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. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.11.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $262,809.20. The trade was a 54.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895 in the last 90 days. 0.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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).