Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Up 0.8% After Earnings Beat

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 0.8% during trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $42.93 and last traded at $43.27. Approximately 13,098,402 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 35% from the average daily volume of 20,142,929 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.93.

The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. The company had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.31 billion.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Verizon Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Argus upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wolfe Research cut shares of Verizon Communications from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.35.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was 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 owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total transaction of $453,154.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 14,590 shares in the company, valued at $596,439.20. The trade was a 43.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 54,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,233,295. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Crescent Sterling Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. now owns 30,906 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,402,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the period. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. NCM Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. NCM Capital Management LLC now owns 18,390 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $735,000 after buying an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CRA Financial Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC now owns 6,913 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 2.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.63. The firm's 50-day moving average is $43.64 and its 200 day moving average is $41.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $176.43 billion, a PE ratio of 10.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41.

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).