Socha Financial Group LLC Increases Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Socha Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,255 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications makes up approximately 0.2% of Socha Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Socha Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $416,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth about $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Denver PWM LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:VZ traded down $0.20 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $41.06. 4,619,990 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,494,576. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $35.40 and a 52-week high of $45.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $172.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.70, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.43. The business’s fifty day moving average is $43.15 and its 200-day moving average is $41.37.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $33.30 billion during 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 firm’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.22 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.60%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 116.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. 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 report on Thursday, September 26th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.37.

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).