Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stock Position Lifted by Peddock Capital Advisors LLC

Peddock Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 0.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,670 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 403 shares during the quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,006,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Vima LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the 1st quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $44.02. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,490,324 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,608,012. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $42.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $185.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.42, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.62 and a fifty-two week high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.16%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 101.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on VZ shares. Bank of America upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Scotiabank upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.26.

Verizon Communications Company 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).