Ancora Advisors LLC Has $1.68 Million Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Ancora Advisors LLC has reduced its stake in Verizon Communications by 39.5% to 37,111 shares, valued at approximately $1.68 million, according to their latest filing.
• Several institutional investors like GQG Partners LLC and Pacer Advisors Inc. significantly increased their positions in Verizon, with GQG raising its stake by 303.9%.
• Analysts have set new price targets for Verizon, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.44, following a positive earnings report that exceeded estimates.

Ancora Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 39.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,111 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 24,247 shares during the quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,683,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Aprio Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 11.3% during the first quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,206 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $644,000 after buying an additional 1,444 shares during the period. 1 North Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Promethium Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 56.7% during the 1st quarter. Promethium Advisors LLC now owns 9,400 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $426,000 after buying an additional 3,400 shares in the last quarter. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 12.8% in the 1st quarter. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,989 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $498,000 after purchasing an additional 1,243 shares during the period. Finally, Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec increased its position in Verizon Communications by 23.8% during the first quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 1,202,549 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $54,550,000 after buying an additional 231,405 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.65.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ traded down $1.11 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $43.27. 20,421,758 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,128,303. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $43.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $182.45 billion, a PE ratio of 10.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.36. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $47.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 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 Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.4%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is currently 63.17%.

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).