Vertex Planning Partners LLC Acquires 4,296 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Vertex Planning Partners LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 66.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,729 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,296 shares during the quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $429,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 10,968 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. now owns 31,728 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,425,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. JB Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. JB Capital LLC now owns 20,816 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $832,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the period. Curbstone Financial Management Corp increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Curbstone Financial Management Corp now owns 34,786 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,391,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 2,915 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $117,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $44.99 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $189.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.87, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The business’s 50 day moving average is $41.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.07. 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 12-month low of $37.59 and a 12-month high of $47.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results 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 net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 65.46%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $262,809.20. The trade was a 54.83 % 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.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on VZ. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wolfe Research downgraded Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Argus raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.71.

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).