Successful Portfolios LLC Sells 1,844 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Successful Portfolios LLC lessened its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 22.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,396 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,844 shares during the quarter. Successful Portfolios LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $268,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its position in Verizon Communications by 627.8% during the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 130.1% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vima LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Verizon Communications stock opened at $41.24 on Monday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.14 and a 12-month high of $43.42. The stock has a market cap of $173.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.39, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $40.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.23 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. Verizon Communications’s revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 99.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on VZ. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $33.00 to $39.00 in a report on Friday, March 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.14.

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).