Ransom Advisory Ltd Takes $741,000 Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Ransom Advisory Ltd has taken a new position in Verizon Communications, purchasing 16,338 shares valued at approximately $741,000 during the first quarter.
• Several brokerages have raised their price targets for Verizon, with JPMorgan and Bank of America increasing their target prices to $49.00, while maintaining a "neutral" rating.
• Verizon Communications has announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.69 per share, effective November 3rd, representing an annualized yield of 6.3%.

Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 16,338 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $741,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Sargent Investment Group LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.3% during the first quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 7,125 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $323,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the first quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. now owns 30,906 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,402,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 80,178 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $3,637,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $49.00 target price on the stock. 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. Wall Street Zen upgraded Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Arete Research upgraded Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.65.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.5%

VZ opened at $43.55 on Wednesday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $43.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.37. The company has a market capitalization of $183.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.15, a PEG ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.36. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.Verizon Communications's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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).

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