Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 1.5% - Here's Why

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) was down 1.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $42.30 and last traded at $42.97. Approximately 6,553,433 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 67% from the average daily volume of 20,109,390 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.61.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI upgraded Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. StockNews.com cut Verizon Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Argus raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Nine investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.41.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.8%

The stock has a market cap of $178.31 billion, a PE ratio of 10.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $43.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.41%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.52%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the firm's 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 $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total value of $212,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 36,508 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,550,859.84. This trade represents a 12.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 31,500 shares of company stock worth $1,376,300. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Aprio Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,762 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $510,000 after acquiring an additional 1,669 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 31.0% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 25,583 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,023,000 after acquiring an additional 6,059 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 19.8% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 31,833 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,204,000 after buying an additional 5,265 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 48,058 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,922,000 after buying an additional 3,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Traveka Wealth LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 6,235 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 846 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

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).