Seamount Financial Group Inc. Invests $451,000 in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Seamount Financial Group Inc. invested approximately $451,000 in Verizon Communications by acquiring 10,430 shares in the second quarter.
• Verizon Communications recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.68 to $0.69, representing an annualized dividend yield of 6.7%.
• Wells Fargo upgraded Verizon's target price from $42.00 to $43.00, contributing to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from various analysts.

Seamount Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 10,430 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $451,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. SteelPeak Wealth LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 52.0% during the second quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 589,462 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,506,000 after buying an additional 201,755 shares during the period. Motiv8 Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.4% in the 2nd quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC now owns 35,505 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,536,000 after acquiring an additional 2,737 shares in the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 125,967 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $5,451,000 after acquiring an additional 3,477 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Inc. OK boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 0.4% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 1,277,523 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $55,278,000 after acquiring an additional 5,261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.9% in the second quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 105,932 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $4,584,000 after purchasing an additional 1,937 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on VZ. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company 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 research note on Friday, September 26th. Bank of America increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $49.00 price target for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Three equities research 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.63.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 5.0%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $41.49 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market cap of $174.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.67, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.37.

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, 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 company had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications'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. Equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $0.69 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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).

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