Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Bought by Core Alternative Capital

Core Alternative Capital raised its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 122,082 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,384 shares during the period. Core Alternative Capital’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,035,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Gilbert & Cook Inc. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 24,158 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $911,000 after acquiring an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,525 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $359,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $201,000. Evoke Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC now owns 26,331 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $993,000 after purchasing an additional 1,930 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 548,527 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $20,679,000 after buying an additional 13,243 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:VZ opened at $44.89 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $188.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $30.14 and a one year high of $45.05. 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 $41.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.95.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The company had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.21 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict 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 dividend of $0.678 per share. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.04%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 6th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.09.

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).