Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Up 0.3%

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) shot up 0.3% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $40.65 and last traded at $40.51. 3,568,245 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 19,457,859 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. KeyCorp upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded Verizon Communications from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $44.21.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $170.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $40.29 and a 200 day moving average of $39.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.23 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The firm's revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.20 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 24,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.80, for a total value of $979,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,201 shares in the company, valued at $1,436,200.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 627.8% during the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 130.1% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HBC Financial Services PLLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 320.0% during the third quarter. HBC Financial Services PLLC now owns 1,050 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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).

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