Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd. Cuts Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Key Points

• Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd. has reduced its stake in Verizon Communications by 51.0%, now holding 250,500 shares valued at approximately $11.36 million.
• Verizon reported $1.22 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and representing a revenue increase of 5.2% year-over-year to $34.50 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.6775, translating to an annualized dividend yield of 6.39%, set to be paid on August 1st.

Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd. lessened its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 51.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 250,500 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 260,400 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications accounts for 1.8% of Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd.'s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $11,363,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 96,823,092 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $3,862,441,000 after buying an additional 998,847 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Verizon Communications by 12.4% in the fourth 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. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 13.3% in the fourth 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. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Verizon Communications by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 36,851,192 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,473,557,000 after acquiring an additional 990,775 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in Verizon Communications by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 27,418,052 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,096,447,000 after acquiring an additional 1,348,389 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.35.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total transaction of $396,900.00. Following the transaction, 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. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.2%

VZ traded up $0.08 on Friday, hitting $42.84. 20,451,703 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 22,016,279. The company has a market cap of $180.63 billion, a PE ratio of 9.99, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.37. The stock's fifty day moving average is $42.76 and its 200-day moving average is $42.63. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

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

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).