Essex Financial Services Inc. Has $3.40 Million Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Essex Financial Services Inc. reduced its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 84,949 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 5,338 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,397,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Violich Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Violich Capital Management Inc. now owns 177,087 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $7,082,000 after buying an additional 7,030 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 105,702 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,227,000 after purchasing an additional 16,349 shares in the last quarter. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp now owns 55,556 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,222,000 after purchasing an additional 2,846 shares during the period. Principle Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC now owns 43,953 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,758,000 after purchasing an additional 3,474 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Private Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,141 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $446,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of VZ opened at $39.94 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.56. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.58 and a 12-month high of $45.36. The stock has a market cap of $168.14 billion, a PE ratio of 9.65, a PEG ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were issued a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.78%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 65.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. DZ Bank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $47.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 6,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $262,809.20. The trade was a 54.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders sold a total of 39,085 shares of company stock valued at $1,582,995 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

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).