Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Boosts Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 15.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,822,906 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 243,883 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $75,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VZ. Taylor Hoffman Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 32.9% during the 4th quarter. Taylor Hoffman Wealth Management now owns 9,353 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $353,000 after buying an additional 2,314 shares in the last quarter. Leo Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,346,000. WealthTrust Axiom LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. WealthTrust Axiom LLC now owns 118,806 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,479,000 after purchasing an additional 2,422 shares during the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 15.4% in the 2nd quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 283,160 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $11,678,000 after purchasing an additional 37,732 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Windle Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Windle Wealth LLC now owns 164,242 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $6,192,000 after purchasing an additional 1,270 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:VZ opened at $41.45 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.14 and a 12-month high of $43.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $40.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.44. The firm has a market cap of $174.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.47, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.41.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The company had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. Verizon Communications’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.21 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.42%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 99.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on VZ. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 4th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.78.

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).