Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Down 0.5%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) traded down 0.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $40.48 and last traded at $40.54. 1,951,419 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 18,761,299 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.75.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on VZ. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.78.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.9 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $170.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.69 and a 200 day moving average of $40.51.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The company had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.21 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were issued a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.58%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 99.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Miramar Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $14,732,000. Altrius Capital Management Inc increased its position in Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the second quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 109,757 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,526,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the period. Sienna Gestion lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.3% in the second quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 195,645 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $8,065,000 after buying an additional 6,190 shares during the last quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.4% during the second quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 4,872 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $201,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the period. Finally, Kooman & Associates grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.4% during the second quarter. Kooman & Associates now owns 12,690 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $523,000 after acquiring an additional 5,198 shares during the last quarter. 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).