Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 1.4% - Here's What Happened

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) shares traded down 1.4% on Monday . The company traded as low as $43.44 and last traded at $43.42. 5,486,511 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 25,487,563 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.04.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Scotiabank increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Tigress Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, DZ Bank raised Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Nine 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 2.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company has a market cap of $176.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.12, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The stock's 50-day moving average is $43.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.98.

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

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is 65.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total transaction of $810,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 45,675 shares in the company, valued at $1,851,664.50. The trade was a 30.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 54,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,233,295. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mather Group LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 20.7% in the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 27,047 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,227,000 after acquiring an additional 4,647 shares during the period. Alta Advisers Ltd boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 55.7% in the 1st quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd now owns 21,516 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $976,000 after purchasing an additional 7,700 shares during the period. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,286 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 1,650 shares during the period. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 9.1% during the 1st quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 164,417 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $7,458,000 after buying an additional 13,658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smith Salley Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.9% in the first quarter. Smith Salley Wealth Management now owns 40,506 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,837,000 after buying an additional 3,663 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by 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).