Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 0.8%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shares fell 0.8% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $43.37 and last traded at $43.54. 3,814,716 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 18,639,902 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $42.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, September 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. KeyCorp dropped their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.66.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.9 %

The company has a market capitalization of $186.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.63. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.78.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.21 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a $0.678 dividend. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.12%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 101.3% during the 2nd quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 126,253 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $5,207,000 after buying an additional 63,539 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the second quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 267,777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $11,043,000 after purchasing an additional 3,069 shares during the period. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at approximately $893,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth $33,532,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth $178,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).