Quarry LP Sells 6,984 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Quarry LP significantly reduced its holdings in Verizon Communications by 63.1%, selling nearly 7,000 shares during the first quarter.
• Verizon reported a 5.2% increase in quarterly revenue year-over-year, with earnings per share beating estimates at $1.22 compared to the consensus of $1.19.
• The company has announced a $0.6775 quarterly dividend, yielding 6.1% on an annualized basis, with a payout ratio of 63.17%.

Quarry LP cut its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 63.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,079 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 6,984 shares during the quarter. Quarry LP's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $185,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. 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 worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth $26,000. 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 worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the period. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth $30,000. Finally, EQ Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth $32,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock traded down $0.46 on Tuesday, reaching $43.78. 21,110,028 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,573,251. The company has a market capitalization of $184.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.36. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $47.35. The firm's 50-day moving average is $43.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The business had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.15 EPS. The business's 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 predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.2%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on VZ. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Arete Research raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.44.

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).