Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Sold by Colonial Trust Advisors

Key Points

• Colonial Trust Advisors reduced its holdings in Verizon Communications by 21.3% during the first quarter, selling 20,705 shares and leaving them with 76,591 shares valued at approximately $3.47 million.
• Several other hedge funds increased their stakes in Verizon, with Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosting ownership by 81.0% and Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC raising theirs by 71.8%.
• Verizon reported an EPS of $1.22 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts’ expectations of $1.19, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.6775, yielding 6.1%.

Colonial Trust Advisors cut its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 21.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 76,591 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 20,705 shares during the quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors' holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,474,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the 1st quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the fourth quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Scotiabank raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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, July 10th. Bank of America raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Eleven investment 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $44.37 on Tuesday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $42.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $187.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.34, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.36. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion for 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 company's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's 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).

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