Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 0% – Should You Sell?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s share price traded down 0% on Monday . The company traded as low as $40.44 and last traded at $40.46. 3,230,916 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 18,543,271 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.48.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Tigress Financial increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. 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 MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $173.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.43. 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 company’s 50-day moving average is $43.03 and its 200-day moving average is $41.41.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.22 EPS. Verizon Communications’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company 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 is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.59%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 116.81%.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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).