Bryce Point Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Bryce Point Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 12,079 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $483,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $43.11 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $181.47 billion, a PE ratio of 10.41, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $42.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.59 and a twelve month high of $47.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 65.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. StockNews.com lowered Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.82.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total transaction of $810,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 45,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,851,664.50. The trade was a 30.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895 over the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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).