Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stock Position Increased by Leelyn Smith LLC

Leelyn Smith LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 64,836 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 1,984 shares during the quarter. Leelyn Smith LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,912,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the 3rd quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE VZ opened at $43.15 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $181.65 billion, a PE ratio of 18.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $42.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $41.53. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $36.46 and a 12-month high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.22 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a $0.678 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.29%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 116.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on VZ shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.37.

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).