Buck Wealth Strategies LLC Has $10.77 Million Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Buck Wealth Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 11.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 237,443 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 23,690 shares during the period. Verizon Communications makes up about 2.0% of Buck Wealth Strategies LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,770,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 363,824,525 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $14,549,343,000 after buying an additional 5,697,337 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 108,694,230 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $4,346,682,000 after buying an additional 7,421,148 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 96,823,092 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $3,862,441,000 after acquiring an additional 998,847 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $2,300,846,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total value of $396,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 10,008 shares in the company, valued at $441,352.80. This trade represents a 47.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders have sold 21,500 shares of company stock worth $938,400 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 1.1%

VZ stock traded down $0.48 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $42.15. The stock had a trading volume of 15,592,520 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,119,987. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market cap of $177.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $43.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.21. 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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.66% and a net margin of 13.14%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.43%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI raised Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Wolfe Research cut Verizon Communications from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Tigress Financial boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.41.

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).