EntryPoint Capital LLC Increases Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• EntryPoint Capital LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 114.8% in Q1, acquiring an additional 8,378 shares and now holds 15,677 shares valued at approximately $711,000.
• Verizon reported $1.22 EPS for the last quarter, beating estimates, and had a year-over-year revenue increase of 5.2%, totaling $34.50 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6775, which represents an annualized amount of $2.71 and a dividend yield of 6.0%.

EntryPoint Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 114.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,677 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 8,378 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications accounts for about 0.3% of EntryPoint Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. EntryPoint Capital LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $711,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Venture Visionary Partners LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the first quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 138,476 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $6,281,000 after buying an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.6% during the first quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 697,877 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $31,657,000 after purchasing an additional 24,088 shares during the last quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.3% during the first quarter. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA now owns 46,146 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $2,012,000 after buying an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Nan Shan Life Insurance Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 17.5% in the first quarter. Nan Shan Life Insurance Co. Ltd. now owns 2,339,047 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $106,099,000 after purchasing an additional 347,686 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.1% in the first quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 39,221 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,779,000 after purchasing an additional 1,166 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $44.9350 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day moving average is $42.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.58 and a 12-month high of $47.35. The company has a market cap of $189.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.15 EPS. The company's revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.0%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 63.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley increased 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. Bank of America increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.35.

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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