By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
CNB Bank reduced its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Free Report) by 35.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,404 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 6,252 shares during the period. CNB Bank’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $456,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fermata Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.5% in the third quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 5,626 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Austin Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,450 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $379,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.4% during the second quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 54,926 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,240,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $343,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wynn Capital LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 5,945 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.
Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.1 %
Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $38.77 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $41.11 and its 200 day moving average is $41.73. The stock has a market cap of $163.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.46. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $45.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The firm had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.22 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 EPS for the current year.
Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 116.81%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Raymond James lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. 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 note on Monday, September 23rd. Scotiabank raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.54.
Get Our Latest Research Report on Verizon Communications
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).
Further Reading
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