272,270 Shares in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Bought by AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs

Key Points

• AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs purchased 272,270 shares of Verizon Communications, valued at approximately $11.97 million, making it their 25th largest position.
• Verizon recently reported a quarterly EPS of $1.22, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenue increasing 5.2% year-over-year to $34.50 billion.
• The company declared a new quarterly dividend of $0.69, reflecting a slight increase from the previous dividend and representing a yield of 6.3%.

AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 272,270 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $11,969,000. Verizon Communications accounts for approximately 0.7% of AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs' investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of VZ. GQG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 303.9% during the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 49,859,967 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $2,261,648,000 after purchasing an additional 37,516,167 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at $661,720,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 737.5% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 11,697,003 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $530,576,000 after acquiring an additional 10,300,369 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 301.2% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 8,504,920 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $385,750,000 after acquiring an additional 6,385,197 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 20.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 31,626,373 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,434,572,000 after acquiring an additional 5,392,416 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.4%

VZ opened at $44.12 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $186.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.36. The business has a 50-day moving average of $43.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.38. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The firm's revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.15 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.3%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on VZ shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $49.00 target price for the company. Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.65.

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).

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