Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Up 1.2% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Verizon Communications' share price rose 1.2% to close at $43.78, despite a significant drop in trading volume.
• Analysts are optimistic about the stock, with 11 ratings as hold, 7 as buy, and 3 as strong buy, setting a consensus price target of $47.35.
• Verizon recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6775, yielding 6.2%, with a payout ratio of 63.17%.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report)'s share price traded up 1.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $43.70 and last traded at $43.78. 3,722,847 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 21,564,504 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.25.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 1.1%

The stock has a market cap of $184.34 billion, a PE ratio of 10.19, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $42.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.88.

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

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were issued a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at $2,504,150,000. GQG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 303.9% in the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 49,859,967 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $2,261,648,000 after acquiring an additional 37,516,167 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth $661,720,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 737.5% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 11,697,003 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $530,576,000 after purchasing an additional 10,300,369 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 3,601.6% during the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 8,937,180 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $357,398,000 after purchasing an additional 8,695,736 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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).

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