Avior Wealth Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Avior Wealth Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 63.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,248 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 26,797 shares during the period. Avior Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $700,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. raised its position in Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 114.6% during the fourth quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $41.70 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.59 and a 1 year high of $47.36. The company has a market cap of $175.80 billion, a PE ratio of 9.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The stock's 50-day moving average is $43.32 and its 200 day moving average is $42.21.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.66% and a net margin of 13.14%. The company had revenue of $33.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.31 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.50%. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is 64.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Verizon Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Evercore ISI upgraded Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.41.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total transaction of $396,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 10,008 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $441,352.80. The trade was a 47.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 21,500 shares of company stock valued at $938,400. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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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