Fred Alger Management LLC Buys 6,952 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Fred Alger Management LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 131,046 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 6,952 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,241,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,954,357 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $222,500,000 after buying an additional 129,171 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 31,672 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,267,000 after purchasing an additional 2,267 shares during the last quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC now owns 12,998 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $506,000 after purchasing an additional 2,066 shares during the period. First International Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. First International Bank & Trust now owns 7,046 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $282,000 after purchasing an additional 1,109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,062,347 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $42,483,000 after purchasing an additional 11,605 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $43.65. 10,876,975 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,162,293. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.59 and a 52 week high of $47.36. The company's 50 day moving average price is $43.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $184.04 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.21%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on VZ shares. DZ Bank raised Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Argus raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.41.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In related news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total transaction of $212,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,508 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,550,859.84. This trade represents a 12.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,500 shares of company stock worth $1,376,300. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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).