Penbrook Management LLC Buys 700 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Penbrook Management LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,171 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the period. Verizon Communications accounts for about 0.8% of Penbrook Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Penbrook Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,266,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA increased its position in Verizon Communications by 627.8% in the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 565 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 130.1% during the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares during the period. Finally, Vima LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of VZ traded down $0.64 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $41.10. 20,110,430 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,927,629. The business has a fifty day moving average of $40.13 and a 200-day moving average of $40.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $173.00 billion, a PE ratio of 15.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.41. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $30.14 and a 1-year high of $43.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The company had revenue of $33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.20 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 99.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com raised Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.14.

Verizon Communications 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).