Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 20,912 Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 20,912 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $836,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock traded up $1.06 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $43.41. The company had a trading volume of 14,592,357 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,166,959. The firm has a market cap of $183.03 billion, a PE ratio of 10.49, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $43.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.59 and a fifty-two week high of $47.36.

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

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.24%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total value of $396,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 10,008 shares in the company, valued at $441,352.80. This represents a 47.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares of the company's stock, valued at $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 31,500 shares of company stock worth $1,376,300 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Scotiabank lifted 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. Wolfe Research lowered Verizon Communications from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Argus raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Tigress Financial upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.41.

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).