Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Bought by Breakwater Capital Group

Breakwater Capital Group grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 44.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,669 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 2,656 shares during the period. Breakwater Capital Group’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $347,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the fourth quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 762.6% during the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,061 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 938 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ opened at $38.33 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $41.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.76. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $45.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market cap of $161.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.52, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.46.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.22 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.07%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 116.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Raymond James upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.54.

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).