Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Bought by Plato Investment Management Ltd

Key Points

• Plato Investment Management Ltd increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 9.8%, owning 121,473 shares valued at approximately $5.57 million.
• Verizon reported a 5.2% year-over-year revenue growth of $34.50 billion and an EPS of $1.22, beating analyst expectations of $1.19.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.69, representing a yield of 6.3%, which will be paid to investors of record on October 10th.

Plato Investment Management Ltd increased its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 9.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 121,473 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 10,801 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.3% in the first quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 46,486 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $2,109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,503 shares during the period. SageView Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 36,315 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,647,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the period. SCS Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth $444,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 41,993,829 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,904,840,000 after buying an additional 3,100,342 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Woodline Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 42.4% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 1,984,204 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $90,003,000 after buying an additional 591,011 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE:VZ opened at $43.55 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $183.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.36. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $47.35. 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 (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.15 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on VZ. Wall Street Zen raised Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $49.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.65.

Verizon Communications 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).

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