Kanawha Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Kanawha Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.5% in the second quarter, now owning 236,338 shares valued at approximately $10.23 million.
• Verizon reported $34.50 billion in revenue for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, with an earnings per share of $1.22, surpassing estimates by $0.03.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.69 per share, reflecting a 6.8% yield, which is an increase from the previous dividend of $0.68.

Kanawha Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 236,338 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after buying an additional 7,922 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,226,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC increased its stake 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 worth $26,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. 1 North Wealth Services LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $40.56 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $43.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.10. The stock has a market cap of $170.99 billion, a PE ratio of 9.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $47.35.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The firm's revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.8%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Verizon Communications from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.63.

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).

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