Norinchukin Bank The Boosts Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Norinchukin Bank The increased its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. by 14.7%, owning a total of 229,622 shares worth approximately $10.4 million after purchasing an additional 29,454 shares in the first quarter.
• Institutional investors collectively own 62.06% of Verizon's stock, with multiple hedge funds, including Vanguard Group Inc. and GQG Partners LLC, also boosting their stakes during the same period.
• Verizon's stock recently received several upgrades from analysts, with a target price increase from $42.00 to $43.00 by Wells Fargo and a new "strong-buy" rating from Arete Research.

Norinchukin Bank The lifted its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 14.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 229,622 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after buying an additional 29,454 shares during the quarter. Norinchukin Bank The's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,416,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VZ. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 368,171,941 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $16,700,279,000 after buying an additional 4,347,416 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 109,866,405 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,983,225,000 after acquiring an additional 1,172,175 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 303.9% during the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 49,859,967 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $2,261,648,000 after purchasing an additional 37,516,167 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.0% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,475,099 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $2,062,750,000 after purchasing an additional 431,789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $1,555,351,000 after purchasing an additional 4,568,518 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VZ shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target 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. Wall Street Zen raised Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Arete Research upgraded Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $45.0070 on Thursday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $42.73 and its 200 day moving average is $43.04. The company has a market cap of $189.76 billion, a PE ratio of 10.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.36. 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 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 posted 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 return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.15 earnings per share. The business'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. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.17%.

Verizon Communications Company 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).

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding VZ? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report).

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.