SkyOak Wealth LLC Has $2 Million Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

SkyOak Wealth LLC trimmed its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 26.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,107 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 16,130 shares during the quarter. SkyOak Wealth LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,001,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Crescent Sterling Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the first quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. now owns 30,906 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. NCM Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. NCM Capital Management LLC now owns 18,390 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $735,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CRA Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.7% during the first quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC now owns 6,913 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $314,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 1.0%

VZ stock traded down $0.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $41.63. The company had a trading volume of 20,156,157 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,209,684. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $43.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.36. The company has a market capitalization of $175.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.91, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.59 and a 52 week high of $47.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.66% and a net margin of 13.14%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.51%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total transaction of $396,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 10,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $441,352.80. The trade was a 47.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,500 shares of company stock worth $938,400. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Tigress Financial upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $47.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.00.

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).