FSA Advisors Inc. Takes Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Key Points

• FSA Advisors Inc. acquired 6,988 shares of Verizon Communications Inc. valued at approximately $317,000 in the first quarter, highlighting growing institutional interest in the company.
• Several analysts have raised their price targets for Verizon, with the consensus rating identified as "Moderate Buy" and an average target of $47.35.
• Verizon recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6775, resulting in an annualized yield of 6.39%, reflecting a strong commitment to returning value to shareholders.

FSA Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 6,988 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $317,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% during 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 during the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during 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 during the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $42.38 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $42.82 and a 200 day moving average of $42.59. The stock has a market cap of $178.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released 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 net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.15 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.39%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total value of $396,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 10,008 shares of the company's stock, valued at $441,352.80. The trade was a 47.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.