Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Acquired by Boston Research & Management Inc.

Boston Research & Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 106,500 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,154 shares during the period. Boston Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 69.6% during the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the period. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $45.00 target price (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Argus raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total transaction of $810,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 45,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,851,664.50. This represents a 30.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of Verizon Communications 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 owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895 in the last quarter. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $44.96 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.63. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $42.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.07. The stock has a market cap of $189.25 billion, a PE ratio of 10.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.59 and a one year high of $47.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. On average, analysts forecast 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.03%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.46%.

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).