Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Holdings Lifted by Keystone Financial Planning Inc.

Keystone Financial Planning Inc. lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 0.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 244,014 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 1,128 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications makes up 3.3% of Keystone Financial Planning Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Keystone Financial Planning Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,959,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VZ. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC now owns 11,865 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $533,000 after acquiring an additional 1,085 shares during the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.7% in the third quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 95,307 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,280,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the period. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 41.2% in the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 87,567 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $3,933,000 after purchasing an additional 25,536 shares during the period. Sitrin Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the third quarter valued at $227,000. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 1.7% during the third quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 38,365 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,723,000 after buying an additional 629 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 1.8 %

NYSE VZ opened at $41.36 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. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $35.31 and a fifty-two week high of $45.36. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $43.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $41.34. The stock has a market cap of $174.11 billion, a PE ratio of 17.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.56%. This is a positive change 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%.

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).