SpiderRock Advisors LLC Raises Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

SpiderRock Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 113.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 207,038 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 110,264 shares during the quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $9,298,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% in the third 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 during the period. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $40.50 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.38. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $35.40 and a 52 week high of $45.36. 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 $170.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.46, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.43.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The company had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 116.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on VZ shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America raised 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. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.37.

About Verizon Communications

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).