Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 2.6% Following Insider Selling

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 2.6% on Friday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $41.45 and last traded at $41.70. 6,916,399 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 20,076,056 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.81.

Specifically, CEO Kyle Malady sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total transaction of $212,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 36,508 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,550,859.84. This trade represents a 12.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research cut Verizon Communications from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $45.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.41.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.3 %

The firm has a market cap of $184.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.37, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a fifty day moving average of $43.65 and a 200 day moving average of $41.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.31%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Verizon Communications by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 363,824,525 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $14,549,343,000 after purchasing an additional 5,697,337 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 108,694,230 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,346,682,000 after acquiring an additional 7,421,148 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 96,823,092 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $3,862,441,000 after acquiring an additional 998,847 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,300,846,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,043,310 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,801,282,000 after purchasing an additional 4,951,733 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

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).