Trajan Wealth LLC Reduces Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Key Points

• Trajan Wealth LLC sold 19,243 shares of Verizon Communications, reducing its stake by 13.9%, leading to a total holding of 119,106 shares valued at approximately $5.4 million.
• Verizon Communications reported earnings of $1.22 EPS for the quarter, surpassing analysts' estimate of $1.19, with revenues totaling $34.50 billion, a year-over-year increase of 5.2%.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6775 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 6.3%, and reported a dividend payout ratio of 63.17%.

Trajan Wealth LLC trimmed its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 13.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 119,106 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 19,243 shares during the quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 368,171,941 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $16,700,279,000 after acquiring an additional 4,347,416 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 109,866,405 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,983,225,000 after acquiring an additional 1,172,175 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 12.4% during the 4th 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 period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 13.3% in the 4th 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 worth $1,555,351,000 after purchasing an additional 4,568,518 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 36,851,192 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,473,557,000 after purchasing an additional 990,775 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $43.25. The company had a trading volume of 12,466,714 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,171,326. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $47.35. The firm has a market cap of $182.36 billion, a PE ratio of 10.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.36. The business's 50 day moving average price is $42.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Arete Research raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.35.

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).