Integrity Alliance LLC. Invests $2.10 Million in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Integrity Alliance LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications, investing approximately $2.10 million for 46,352 shares during the first quarter.
• Verizon Communications reported earnings of $1.22 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing estimates and achieving a revenue of $34.50 billion, reflecting a 5.2% year-over-year increase.
• The company announced a dividend increase to $0.69 per share, with a yield of 6.3%, scheduled for distribution on November 3rd.

Integrity Alliance LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 46,352 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $2,103,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GQG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 303.9% in the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 49,859,967 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $2,261,648,000 after buying an additional 37,516,167 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $661,720,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 737.5% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 11,697,003 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $530,576,000 after acquiring an additional 10,300,369 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 20.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 31,626,373 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,434,572,000 after acquiring an additional 5,392,416 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 38,893,487 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,555,351,000 after purchasing an additional 4,568,518 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $43.50 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $43.20 and a 200-day moving average of $43.37. The firm has a market cap of $183.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.36. 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 Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.58 and a twelve month high of $47.35.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 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, seven have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.65.

Verizon Communications Company 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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