LM Advisors LLC Buys New Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

LM Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 94,355 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $3,557,000. Verizon Communications accounts for about 0.7% of LM Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 627.8% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 130.1% during the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HBC Financial Services PLLC boosted its position 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 acquiring an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:VZ traded up $0.19 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $39.81. The stock had a trading volume of 12,367,198 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,271,928. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $30.14 and a one year high of $43.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The company has a market capitalization of $167.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.91, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.42. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $40.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.41.

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

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th were paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.68%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 9th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Verizon Communications from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the company from $36.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Verizon Communications from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the company from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $44.36.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 24,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 35,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,436,200.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

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).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.