Metis Global Partners LLC Has $10.69 Million Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Key Points

• Metis Global Partners LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 11.0% in the first quarter, owning approximately $10.69 million worth of stock.
• CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of Verizon stock, representing a 47.35% decrease in his ownership.
• Verizon Communications reported earnings of $1.22 per share for the quarter, exceeding expectations and showing a 5.2% revenue growth year over year.

Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 11.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 235,740 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 23,338 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,693,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,759,000 after acquiring an additional 16,704 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $218,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in Verizon Communications by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 2,482,627 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $99,280,000 after purchasing an additional 267,075 shares in the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 176,397 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $7,054,000 after buying an additional 10,873 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RiverFront Investment Group LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. RiverFront Investment Group LLC now owns 9,086 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $363,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total value of $396,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 10,008 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $441,352.80. The trade was a 47.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.0%

VZ stock opened at $43.10 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average is $42.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.54. The company has a market cap of $181.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.58 and a fifty-two week high of $47.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.64.

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, 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 company had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.29%. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI raised Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective 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. 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 has an average 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).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.