Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Increases Dividend to $0.69 Per Share

Key Points

• Verizon Communications Inc. has raised its quarterly dividend to $0.69 per share, an increase of 1.8% from the previous quarter, with a dividend yield of 6.7%.
• The company reported earnings of $1.22 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, and had a revenue of $34.50 billion.
• Verizon's stock currently reflects an average "Moderate Buy" rating from analysts, with a consensus price target of $47.63.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, September 5th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of 0.69 per share by the cell phone carrier on Monday, November 3rd. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This is a 1.8% increase from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68.

Verizon Communications has a dividend payout ratio of 56.1% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Verizon Communications to earn $4.86 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.71 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 55.8%.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.0%

VZ stock opened at $41.44 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications has a fifty-two week low of $37.58 and a fifty-two week high of $47.35. The business's 50 day moving average price is $43.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64. The company has a market capitalization of $174.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.37.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on VZ shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Arete Research upgraded Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.63.

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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