Keynote Financial Services LLC Has $2.01 Million Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Key Points

• Keynote Financial Services LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 20.2%, owning 44,330 shares after acquiring an additional 7,445 shares in Q1.
• Several large investors, including Bernard Wealth Management and Garde Capital, have made significant adjustments to their positions in Verizon, indicating increased interest in the stock.
• Latest earnings reported a 5.2% increase in quarterly revenue, reaching $34.50 billion, with an EPS of $1.22, surpassing analyst expectations.

Keynote Financial Services LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 20.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 44,330 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 7,445 shares during the period. Verizon Communications comprises about 1.4% of Keynote Financial Services LLC's holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Keynote Financial Services LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the 1st quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, EQ Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ traded up $0.59 during trading on Thursday, hitting $42.94. 15,537,636 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 19,860,102. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $47.35. The company has a market capitalization of $181.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.36. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $42.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is 63.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.35.

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).