Korea Investment CORP Has $123.63 Million Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Korea Investment CORP reduced its stake in Verizon Communications by 9.5%, holding 2,725,541 shares worth approximately $123.63 million at the end of the most recent reporting period.
• Verizon Communications reported a net margin of 13.28% and a revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, surpassing analyst estimates of $33.47 billion.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.6775 per share, translating to an annual yield of 6.1% and a dividend payout ratio of 63.17%.

Korea Investment CORP lessened its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 9.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,725,541 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 285,165 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned 0.06% of Verizon Communications worth $123,631,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 61.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,759,000 after acquiring an additional 16,704 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 568.3% during the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 35,273 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,411,000 after acquiring an additional 29,995 shares in the last quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 22.4% during the fourth quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 327,136 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $13,082,000 after acquiring an additional 59,889 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in Verizon Communications by 52.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 19,828,378 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $792,937,000 after acquiring an additional 6,846,514 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Inc. CA raised its position in Verizon Communications by 128.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Inc. CA now owns 158,156 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $6,325,000 after acquiring an additional 89,045 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the topic of several analyst reports. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Arete Research raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $44.24 on Monday. 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 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The firm has a market cap of $186.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.36. The company's 50-day moving average price is $42.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.98.

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. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.15 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 63.17%.

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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