Investment Advisory Group LLC Reduces Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Investment Advisory Group LLC decreased its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,015 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 771 shares during the period. Investment Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $604,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 627.8% during the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the period. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 130.1% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the period. HBC Financial Services PLLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 320.0% during the 3rd quarter. HBC Financial Services PLLC now owns 1,050 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 58.4% during the 4th quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 1,096 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE:VZ traded down $0.30 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $39.81. The stock had a trading volume of 5,464,353 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,587,906. The business’s 50 day moving average is $40.58 and its 200 day moving average is $38.10. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.14 and a fifty-two week high of $43.42. The stock has a market cap of $167.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.38, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.71% and a net margin of 8.67%. The firm had revenue of $35.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.68%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 96.38%.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.33, for a total value of $604,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 59,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,387,576.33. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.50.

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).