Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its holdings in Verizon Communications by 9.2%, selling 141,569 shares to end the quarter with approximately 1.4 million shares valued at $63.4 million.
• Verizon reported $1.22 earnings per share, surpassing estimates, with revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, which was also above expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6775 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 6.2% and a payout ratio of 63.17%.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D cut its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 9.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,397,849 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 141,569 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $63,406,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sargent Investment Group LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.3% during the first quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 7,125 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $323,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the first quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. now owns 30,906 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 80,178 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $3,637,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in 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 valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Tigress Financial raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.7%

NYSE VZ traded up $0.74 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $44.24. 21,233,741 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,439,254. The company has a 50 day moving average of $42.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $47.35. The firm has a market cap of $186.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.31, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%. Verizon Communications's revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.15 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.1%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 63.17%.

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).