Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Position Boosted by Rempart Asset Management Inc.

Rempart Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 52.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 310,390 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 107,200 shares during the period. Verizon Communications makes up 2.9% of Rempart Asset Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest position. Rempart Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $14,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VZ. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 61.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,759,000 after purchasing an additional 16,704 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 36.3% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 17,926 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $717,000 after purchasing an additional 4,777 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth approximately $332,000. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 39.2% during the fourth quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,750 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 2,463 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 25,625 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,025,000 after purchasing an additional 3,090 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE:VZ traded up $0.59 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $43.92. 26,553,530 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 20,100,127. The firm's 50-day moving average is $43.57 and its 200-day moving average is $42.23. The stock has a market cap of $185.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.61, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.59 and a 1-year high of $47.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. The business had revenue of $33.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.31 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Verizon Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Evercore ISI upgraded Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total value of $212,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 36,508 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,550,859.84. The trade was a 12.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 21,500 shares of company stock valued at $938,400. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company 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).