Bellecapital International Ltd. Has $2.15 Million Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Bellecapital International Ltd. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 17.6% in Q2, holding 49,737 shares valued at $2.15 million.
• Researchers have varied price targets for Verizon, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. raising their target from $47.00 to $49.00, while the average price target stands at $47.63.
• Verizon recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.69, representing a yield of 6.8% and indicating the company's solid return on equity of 19.61%.

Bellecapital International Ltd. grew its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 17.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 49,737 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after buying an additional 7,435 shares during the period. Bellecapital International Ltd.'s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,152,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sargent Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.3% in the first quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 7,125 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $323,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 80,178 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $3,637,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the period. Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 21,255 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $920,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the 1st 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 during the period. Finally, Platform Technology Partners increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Platform Technology Partners now owns 31,513 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,429,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.63.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ opened at $40.39 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The business's 50 day moving average price is $43.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.17. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $47.35. The stock has a market cap of $170.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.37.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.15 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Equities research 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.34%.

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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