Archford Capital Strategies LLC Reduces Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Archford Capital Strategies LLC trimmed its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 41,626 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,693 shares during the period. Archford Capital Strategies LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of VZ. BCK Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at $2,101,000. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC now owns 5,980 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 487 shares during the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 174.0% in the 1st quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 91,776 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,675,000 after buying an additional 58,283 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,194,111 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $60,828,000 after buying an additional 113,032 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Western Trust Bank purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at $567,000. 61.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.4 %

VZ stock opened at $40.37 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $30.14 and a one year high of $43.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $169.73 billion, a PE ratio of 14.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.69. The company has a fifty day moving average of $40.44 and a 200-day moving average of $37.17.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.08. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.67% and a return on equity of 20.71%. The firm had revenue of $35.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.59%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 96.38%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.33, for a total value of $604,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 59,201 shares in the company, valued at $2,387,576.33. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $43.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.86.

Verizon Communications 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).