Meritage Portfolio Management Boosts Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Meritage Portfolio Management increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 989.5% in the second quarter, now owning 80,284 shares valued at approximately $3.47 million.
• Several analysts recently raised their price targets for Verizon, with the average consensus now at $47.63 and ratings ranging from "Strong Buy" to "Hold."
• Verizon announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.69 per share, reflecting a 6.9% yield, with the ex-dividend date on October 10th.

Meritage Portfolio Management increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 989.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 80,284 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 72,915 shares during the period. Meritage Portfolio Management's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,474,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 121.8% during the first quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 176,531 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $8,007,000 after purchasing an additional 96,931 shares in the last quarter. Element Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $2,799,000. Autumn Glory Partners LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 25.8% during the first quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC now owns 62,277 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $2,825,000 after buying an additional 12,760 shares during the period. Davidson Trust Co. grew its position in Verizon Communications by 95.5% during the first quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 26,785 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,215,000 after buying an additional 13,082 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 68.4% during the first quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,897 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 2,802 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $49.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped 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 report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.63.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 2.4%

VZ stock opened at $39.86 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $43.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $168.05 billion, a PE ratio of 9.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the business earned $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications's revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.9%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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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