Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ Takes Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ purchased a new position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 2,849,462 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $113,950,000. Verizon Communications accounts for 1.3% of Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ's holdings, making the stock its 14th largest position. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ owned approximately 0.07% of Verizon Communications as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the fourth quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $45.00 target price (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. DZ Bank upgraded Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.41.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 5,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total transaction of $212,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,508 shares in the company, valued at $1,550,859.84. This trade represents a 12.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,500 shares of company stock worth $938,400. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $43.30. 9,959,703 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,147,661. The stock has a market capitalization of $182.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $43.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.63. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.59 and a fifty-two week high of $47.36.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.26%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently 64.52%.

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).