BOCHK Asset Management Ltd Buys New Shares in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• BOCHK Asset Management Ltd acquired 7,000 shares of Verizon Communications Inc., valued at approximately $303,000, during the 2nd quarter.
• Multiple analysts have raised their price targets for Verizon Communications, with the average target now at $47.53, signaling a positive outlook for the company's stock.
• Verizon has announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.69, representing a yield of 6.3%, with the ex-dividend date set for October 10th.

BOCHK Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 7,000 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $303,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,759,000 after acquiring an additional 16,704 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth $201,000. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 20.6% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 127,356 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $5,777,000 after purchasing an additional 21,727 shares during the last quarter. Apella Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 40.5% in the first quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 17,571 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $754,000 after purchasing an additional 5,066 shares during the period. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 22,023.0% during the 1st quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,247 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $873,000 after buying an additional 19,160 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.53.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ opened at $43.84 on Thursday. 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 Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $47.35. The firm has a market cap of $184.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.37. The business's fifty day moving average is $43.63 and its 200-day moving average is $43.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. Verizon Communications's revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS 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 paid a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is 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).

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