Valeo Financial Advisors LLC Purchases 1,135,562 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Valeo Financial Advisors LLC significantly increased its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. by 1,025.2% during Q2, acquiring an additional 1,135,562 shares to hold a total of 1,246,329 shares valued at approximately $53.9 million.
• Verizon recently upgraded its quarterly dividend from $0.68 to $0.69, reflecting a 6.3% dividend yield, with the payout set for November 3rd to shareholders on record by October 10th.
• Several analysts have set new price targets for Verizon, with Bank of America increasing its target from $45 to $49, contributing to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $47.53.

Valeo Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 1,025.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,246,329 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 1,135,562 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $53,929,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Kestra Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 121.8% during the first quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 176,531 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $8,007,000 after acquiring an additional 96,931 shares during the last quarter. Element Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,799,000. Autumn Glory Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 25.8% in the 1st quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC now owns 62,277 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $2,825,000 after purchasing an additional 12,760 shares during the period. Davidson Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 95.5% in the 1st quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 26,785 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,215,000 after purchasing an additional 13,082 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 68.4% in the 1st quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,897 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $313,000 after purchasing an additional 2,802 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on VZ shares. Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $49.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three 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. According to MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.53.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $43.68 on Monday. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $43.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.35. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $184.17 billion, a PE ratio of 10.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.37.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business's revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued 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 6.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 63.17%.

About Verizon Communications

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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