Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Down 1.1% Following Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Verizon Communications shares fell by 1.1% after BNP Paribas downgraded the stock from a strong-buy to a hold rating, trading as low as $38.92.
• The company recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.22 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates, with revenue of $34.5 billion, a 5.2% increase year-over-year.
• Verizon announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.69 per share, representing a 6.9% annual dividend yield, to be paid on November 3rd.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) shares were down 1.1% during trading on Wednesday after BNP Paribas downgraded the stock from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating. The stock traded as low as $38.92 and last traded at $39.86. Approximately 30,606,767 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 42% from the average daily volume of 21,522,033 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.30.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on VZ. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Bank of America boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $49.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane cut Verizon Communications from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $44.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.41.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.3% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 372,787,016 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $16,130,494,000 after buying an additional 4,615,075 shares during 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 in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.1% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 109,866,405 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,983,225,000 after purchasing an additional 1,172,175 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.1% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 100,326,792 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,322,700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101,504 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth $2,504,150,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $43.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.04. The company has a market cap of $168.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. This is an increase from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.34%.

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).

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