Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Vicus Capital

Vicus Capital reduced its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 12.6% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,980 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 720 shares during the quarter. Vicus Capital’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Taylor Hoffman Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 32.9% during the fourth quarter. Taylor Hoffman Wealth Management now owns 9,353 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $353,000 after buying an additional 2,314 shares in the last quarter. Leo Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,346,000. WealthTrust Axiom LLC boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. WealthTrust Axiom LLC now owns 118,806 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,479,000 after buying an additional 2,422 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 127,632 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $5,131,000 after buying an additional 1,616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GFS Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth approximately $212,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE VZ opened at $41.24 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $173.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.42. The company’s fifty day moving average is $40.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.04. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $30.14 and a 52-week high of $43.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The business had revenue of $33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.20 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.45%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 99.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.77.

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).