Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Downgraded by BNP Paribas Exane to Neutral

Key Points

• Verizon Communications has been downgraded by BNP Paribas Exane from an "outperform" to a "neutral" rating, with a target price of $44.00 indicating a potential upside of 7.82% from its current price.
• Several research firms have adjusted their price targets on Verizon, with Scotiabank increasing it to $50.50, and Goldman Sachs initiating coverage with a "buy" rating at a $49.00 target price.
• Verizon reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with an EPS of $1.22 surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.19, and revenues of $34.50 billion, exceeding analyst projections.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at BNP Paribas Exane from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $44.00 target price on the cell phone carrier's stock. BNP Paribas Exane's price objective points to a potential upside of 7.82% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on VZ. Scotiabank increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price objective 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, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Verizon Communications from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.41.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $40.81 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The company has a market cap of $172.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.51, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.37. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $43.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.06. Verizon Communications has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $47.35.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.15 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 372,787,016 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $16,130,494,000 after acquiring an additional 4,615,075 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.1% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 208,213,255 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $9,009,388,000 after purchasing an additional 4,205,449 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.1% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 109,866,405 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $4,983,225,000 after purchasing an additional 1,172,175 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 100,326,792 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $4,322,700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101,504 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,504,150,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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