Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Has $22.85 Million Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.2% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 544,473 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 31,560 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $22,846,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VZ. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $1,882,164,000. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 127.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,801,067 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $821,900,000 after purchasing an additional 12,220,777 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 92.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 22,599,173 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $851,989,000 after purchasing an additional 10,882,873 shares in the last quarter. Third Point LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $173,325,000. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 419.8% in the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 5,141,257 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $193,825,000 after purchasing an additional 4,152,099 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE VZ traded up $0.13 on Friday, reaching $41.43. The company had a trading volume of 11,125,524 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,676,326. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $30.14 and a 52 week high of $43.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market cap of $174.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.45, a PEG ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.41. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $40.42 and its 200-day moving average is $40.26.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted 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 return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 8.44%. The firm had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.42%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 99.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on VZ. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted 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. Finally, Tigress Financial boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.23.

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).