Smithfield Trust Co. reduced its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,476 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 3,270 shares during the period. Smithfield Trust Co.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,217,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $1,712,958,000. I.G. Investment Management LTD. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. I.G. Investment Management LTD. now owns 5,237,863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $279,597,000 after buying an additional 2,080,548 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 35.5% in the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 3,768,615 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $183,720,000 after buying an additional 986,786 shares during the period. Macquarie Group Ltd. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 15,133,689 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $807,837,000 after buying an additional 820,585 shares during the period. Finally, Genovese Burford & Brothers Wealth & Retirement Plan Management LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 5,712.1% in the fourth quarter. Genovese Burford & Brothers Wealth & Retirement Plan Management LLC now owns 622,070 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $622,000 after buying an additional 611,367 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.61% of the company’s stock.
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) opened at 47.94 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $195.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.03 and a beta of 0.54. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $44.95 and a 200-day moving average of $47.59. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $42.80 and a 1-year high of $55.82. Verizon Communications also was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 24,016 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 147% compared to the average volume of 9,724 call options.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 63.06%. The business had revenue of $30.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.84 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.94 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post $3.76 earnings per share for the current year.
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 1st. Investors of record on Monday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.5775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 6th. This represents a $2.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.82%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 59.23%.
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A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. Zacks Investment Research upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “hold” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Sunday, July 9th. Vetr upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $46.82 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 17th. Barclays PLC cut their target price on Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $49.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 13th. Finally, TheStreet downgraded Verizon Communications from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-three have issued a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $52.96.
In related news, EVP Marni M. Walden sold 16,362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.08, for a total transaction of $753,960.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,797 shares in the company, valued at $543,605.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Craig L. Silliman sold 610 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.34, for a total transaction of $27,657.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,039 shares in the company, valued at $409,828.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,582 shares of company stock worth $809,068. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Verizon Communications Company Profile
Verizon Communications Inc is a holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, provides communications, information and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses and governmental agencies. Its segments include Wireless and Wireline. The Wireless segment offers communications products and services, including wireless voice and data services and equipment sales, to consumer, business and government customers across the United States.
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