Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Up 2.1% – Here’s Why

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s share price traded up 2.1% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $47.36 and last traded at $47.05. 12,867,677 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 17,821,518 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.06.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VZ shares. Tigress Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Argus upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.11.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average is $40.61 and its 200 day moving average is $41.84. The company has a market cap of $195.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.24, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.82%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 65.46%.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $633,159.61. The trade was a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total value of $453,154.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $596,439.20. The trade was a 43.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of VZ. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the 4th quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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).