Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Meyer Handelman Co.

Meyer Handelman Co. reduced its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,034,865 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 5,062 shares during the period. Verizon Communications makes up 1.4% of Meyer Handelman Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Meyer Handelman Co.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $41,384,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 43,530 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,741,000 after acquiring an additional 1,174 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 221,712 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $8,866,000 after purchasing an additional 31,269 shares in the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 67,186 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,687,000 after purchasing an additional 2,390 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 184.3% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,428,540 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $217,087,000 after buying an additional 3,519,258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $232,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $38.33 on Wednesday. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $41.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $161.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.46. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.07%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on VZ. StockNews.com lowered Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.54.

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).