Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Position Increased by Iowa State Bank

Iowa State Bank increased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 13.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 79,978 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 9,702 shares during the quarter. Iowa State Bank's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,628,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 61.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,759,000 after acquiring an additional 16,704 shares in the last quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 10,929 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the period. Austin Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 9,946 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 1,496 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $154,000. Finally, Clear Creek Financial Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 38,109 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,524,000 after purchasing an additional 4,062 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ traded up $0.13 on Monday, reaching $44.09. The company had a trading volume of 11,870,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,067,044. The company has a fifty day moving average of $43.57 and a 200-day moving average of $42.23. The company has a market capitalization of $185.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.65, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.59 and a one year high of $47.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. The company had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.31 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was 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 now owns 10,008 shares in the company, valued at $441,352.80. This trade represents a 47.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 21,500 shares of company stock worth $938,400. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI raised shares of Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Verizon Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $45.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.41.

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).