Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Position Boosted by Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC

Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 15.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,495 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 864 shares during the quarter. Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $273,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 351,267,175 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $14,739,171,000 after purchasing an additional 1,216,963 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,882,164,000. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 92.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 22,599,173 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $851,989,000 after purchasing an additional 10,882,873 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 127.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,801,067 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $821,900,000 after purchasing an additional 12,220,777 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 12.0% in the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 16,353,817 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $686,206,000 after purchasing an additional 1,757,208 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 6.1 %

Verizon Communications stock traded down $2.53 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $39.09. 54,854,774 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,881,648. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market cap of $164.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.41. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $30.14 and a 1-year high of $43.42. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $40.44.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The company had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.21 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.80%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 99.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.23.

Verizon Communications 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).