Physicians Financial Services Inc. Has $1.06 Million Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Key Points

• Physicians Financial Services Inc. has reduced its stock position in Verizon Communications Inc. by 28.3%, now holding 23,375 shares valued at approximately $1.06 million.
• Verizon reported better-than-expected earnings with a $1.22 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.19, alongside a revenue of $34.50 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.6775, representing an annualized yield of 6.29%, with the payment scheduled for August 1st.

Physicians Financial Services Inc. reduced its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 28.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 23,375 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 9,240 shares during the period. Physicians Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,060,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VZ. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 737.5% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 11,697,003 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $530,576,000 after acquiring an additional 10,300,369 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 3,601.6% in the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 8,937,180 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $357,398,000 after buying an additional 8,695,736 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 52.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 19,828,378 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $792,937,000 after buying an additional 6,846,514 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake 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 valued at $1,801,282,000 after acquiring an additional 4,951,733 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased 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 acquiring an additional 4,568,518 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.0%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $43.10 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $42.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.56. The company has a market capitalization of $181.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.58 and a twelve month high of $47.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

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

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.29%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Tigress Financial upped 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. Finally, Arete Research raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.35.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

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 value of $396,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 10,008 shares in the company, valued at $441,352.80. This represents a 47.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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).

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