Retirement Systems of Alabama Cuts Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Retirement Systems of Alabama reduced its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 5.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,167,116 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 131,112 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.05% of Verizon Communications worth $97,325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc grew its position in Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 450 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the third quarter worth $44,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $41.98 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.14 and a twelve month 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 $176.72 billion, a PE ratio of 18.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.44. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $42.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.85.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted 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. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.22 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 116.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Bank of America raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.46.

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).