Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Purchased by Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.

Key Points

• Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. significantly increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1,028.5% in the first quarter, now owning over 1 million shares valued at approximately $46.65 million.
• Verizon reported earnings of $1.22 EPS for the latest quarter, surpassing estimates, and showed a revenue increase of 5.2% year-over-year, totaling $34.50 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6775, yielding 6.3% annually, with a recent dividend payout ratio of 63.17%.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 1,028.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,028,345 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after buying an additional 937,220 shares during the quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.'s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $46,646,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sargent Investment Group LLC boosted its stake 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 valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the first quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. now owns 30,906 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,402,000 after buying an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NCM Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. NCM Capital Management LLC now owns 18,390 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $735,000 after buying an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Verizon Communications stock traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $43.12. 13,052,485 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 19,669,312. The company has a market capitalization of $181.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.36. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $42.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.83. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.58 and a 1 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 posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm 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 quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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).