Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Great Lakes Advisors LLC

Great Lakes Advisors LLC decreased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,045,094 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 71,558 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $43,100,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 17,760 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $732,000 after buying an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the second quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 21,568 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $889,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.0% during the second quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 5,383 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Private Portfolio Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Private Portfolio Partners LLC now owns 27,457 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,035,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.4% in the first quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,715 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $156,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE:VZ traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $41.15. 18,100,349 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,511,424. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.60. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $30.14 and a twelve month high of $43.42. The stock has a market cap of $173.21 billion, a PE ratio of 15.36, a PEG ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $40.93 and a 200 day moving average of $40.53.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a $0.678 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.59%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on VZ shares. 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. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.66.

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).