Patten & Patten Inc. TN Sells 11,252 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Patten & Patten Inc. TN reduced its stake in Verizon Communications by 28.8%, selling 11,252 shares in the second quarter, leaving it with 27,835 shares valued at approximately $1.2 million.
• Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS, with analysts forecasting an average of 4.69 EPS for the current year.
• The company will increase its quarterly dividend from $0.68 to $0.69, yielding 6.8%, which will be paid on November 3rd to shareholders on record as of October 10th.

Patten & Patten Inc. TN cut its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 28.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,835 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 11,252 shares during the period. Patten & Patten Inc. TN's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,204,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Sargent Investment Group LLC boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 7,125 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $323,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 80,178 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $3,637,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 21,255 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $920,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the 1st quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Platform Technology Partners boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Platform Technology Partners now owns 31,513 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,429,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. 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 recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on 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 cut Verizon Communications from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.63.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $40.38 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $170.26 billion, a PE ratio of 9.41, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $43.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.13. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $47.35.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.15 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.8%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently 64.34%.

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.