Sovereign Financial Group Inc. Has $501,000 Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Sovereign Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,164 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 555 shares during the period. Sovereign Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $501,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Vima LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its position in Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the first quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $44.13 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.18. The company has a market cap of $185.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.47, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $30.62 and a 52 week high of $45.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion for 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.21 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.678 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.15%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on VZ shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Scotiabank upped 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. Eight equities 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, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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).