Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Purchased by Red Spruce Capital LLC

Red Spruce Capital LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,675 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,290 shares during the period. Verizon Communications comprises approximately 1.7% of Red Spruce Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Red Spruce Capital LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,758,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.8% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,440,526 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $64,694,000 after purchasing an additional 24,925 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 157,589 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $7,077,000 after acquiring an additional 1,297 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 32.7% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 30,518 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,371,000 after acquiring an additional 7,517 shares during the last quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP now owns 24,048 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,080,000 after acquiring an additional 794 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goelzer Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.7% during the third quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. now owns 191,537 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $8,602,000 after purchasing an additional 3,272 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE:VZ traded down $0.34 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $44.18. 14,537,280 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,762,088. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $185.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $30.14 and a 12 month high of $45.36. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $42.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.12.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a $0.678 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.14%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Tigress Financial upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.26.

Verizon Communications Profile

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).