Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC trimmed its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 258,207 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 6,320 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises about 1.5% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $11,596,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 137.6% in the 3rd quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ traded up $0.78 during trading on Friday, reaching $41.65. The stock had a trading volume of 21,482,452 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,596,234. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $35.93 and a 52 week high of $45.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $175.33 billion, a PE ratio of 17.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $43.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a $0.678 dividend. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.51%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 116.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Tigress Financial raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.37.

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).