GAMMA Investing LLC Raises Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 14.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 68,641 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 8,800 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,114,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VZ. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the 4th quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares during the period. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.88, for a total transaction of $329,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 19,008 shares in the company, valued at $834,071.04. This represents a 28.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold 21,500 shares of company stock worth $938,400 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE VZ traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $42.32. The company had a trading volume of 21,392,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,128,143. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $178.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $43.15 and a 200 day moving average of $42.21. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.59 and a 1-year high of $47.36.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.40%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Verizon Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.41.

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).