Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Morningstar Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Morningstar Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Verizon Communications by 10%, selling 17,169 shares to hold a total of 154,441 shares, which represents about 0.6% of its portfolio.
• Verizon's CEO, Kyle Malady, sold 9,000 shares valued at approximately $396,900, marking a 47.35% decrease in his ownership of the stock.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.6775 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 6.39%.

Morningstar Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 10.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 154,441 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 17,169 shares during the period. Verizon Communications accounts for about 0.6% of Morningstar Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Morningstar Investment Management LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $7,005,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 737.5% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 11,697,003 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $530,576,000 after purchasing an additional 10,300,369 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3,601.6% in the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 8,937,180 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $357,398,000 after acquiring an additional 8,695,736 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 52.7% in the 4th 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 during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,043,310 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,801,282,000 after acquiring an additional 4,951,733 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 38,893,487 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,555,351,000 after acquiring an additional 4,568,518 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:VZ traded up $0.12 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $42.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 14,947,434 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,000,617. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market cap of $180.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $42.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.63. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.58 and a 1 year high of $47.35.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th will be issued a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 63.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Arete Research upgraded Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Evercore ISI upgraded Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.35.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total transaction of $396,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 10,008 shares in the company, valued at $441,352.80. This trade represents a 47.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

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).