Creekmur Asset Management LLC Sells 8,789 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Creekmur Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 81.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,063 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 8,789 shares during the quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $94,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. raised its position in Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC increased its position in 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 worth $26,000 after buying an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings 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, Graney & King LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on VZ. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $47.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of America started coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $45.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased 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, Scotiabank raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.00.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $40.77 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.59 and a 12-month high of $47.36. The business has a 50 day moving average of $42.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.40. The company has a market capitalization of $171.90 billion, a PE ratio of 9.71, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.37.

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

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.65%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.52%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 10,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $441,352.80. This represents a 47.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders have sold 21,500 shares of company stock worth $938,400. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Verizon Communications

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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