Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC Trims Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Verizon Communications by 8.4%, now holding 279,861 shares, making it the fund's largest investment at approximately $12.11 million.
• Verizon reported $1.22 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing estimates, with a revenue of $34.5 billion, marking a 5.2% increase year-over-year.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.69, up from the previous $0.68, indicating a robust annualized dividend yield of 6.3%.

Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 8.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 279,861 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 25,660 shares during the period. Verizon Communications accounts for approximately 2.0% of Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest position. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $12,110,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Radnor Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.7% in the second quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 56,111 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $2,428,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.7% in the second quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 89,182 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $3,859,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the period. Mirador Capital Partners LP boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 4.9% in the second quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP now owns 27,156 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,175,000 after acquiring an additional 1,257 shares during the last quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.9% in the second quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. now owns 190,087 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $8,225,000 after acquiring an additional 1,634 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 8.1% in the second quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 25,147 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,088,000 after acquiring an additional 1,874 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $43.76 on Wednesday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $43.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $184.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.36. 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 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 return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.15 EPS. The business's revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.3%. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price 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. Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.65.

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).

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