Econ Financial Services Corp Decreases Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Econ Financial Services Corp trimmed its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 38.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,629 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 21,678 shares during the period. Econ Financial Services Corp’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,453,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 627.8% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 130.1% during the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vima LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE:VZ traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $40.03. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 12,891,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,898,098. The company has a market capitalization of $168.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.14 and a fifty-two week high of $43.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $40.57 and a 200-day moving average of $40.46.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.65%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Tigress Financial upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com raised Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the company 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 eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.68.

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).