Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading 0.7% Higher – Time to Buy?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) traded up 0.7% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $41.32 and last traded at $41.15. 3,968,568 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 18,517,395 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.87.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the subject of several recent research reports. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.2 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $43.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.41. The stock has a market cap of $174.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.43.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its 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 company had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.22 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.55%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 116.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 137.6% in the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth about $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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).