ZRC Wealth Management LLC Sells 382 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

ZRC Wealth Management LLC reduced its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 20.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,509 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 382 shares during the quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $63,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VZ. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA increased its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 130.1% in the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $41.12 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $40.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.13. The company has a market capitalization of $173.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34, a PEG ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.14 and a 12-month high of $43.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The business had revenue of $33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.23 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.47%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on VZ. StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 4th. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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).