Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) Position Decreased by Wheatland Advisors Inc.

Wheatland Advisors Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 36,687 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,515 shares during the period. Verizon Communications comprises 1.6% of Wheatland Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Wheatland Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,789,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $1,712,958,000. 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 valued at $807,837,000 after buying an additional 820,585 shares in the last quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings Inc. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 7.1% in the first quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 4,682,265 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $228,265,000 after buying an additional 310,631 shares in the last quarter. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 6.8% in the first quarter. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. now owns 4,358,480 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $179,129,000 after buying an additional 277,129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 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 valued at $183,720,000 after buying an additional 986,786 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.33% of the company’s stock.

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) traded up 0.77% during midday trading on Friday, hitting $48.68. 9,846,677 shares of the stock were exchanged. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $46.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.28. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $42.80 and a 12 month high of $54.83. The company has a market cap of $198.59 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51 and a beta of 0.56.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.96. The company had revenue of $30.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $29.84 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 63.06%. The firm’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.94 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post $3.78 EPS for the current year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 10th were issued a dividend of $0.5775 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 6th. This represents a $2.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.75%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.23%.

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Several analysts have recently weighed in on VZ shares. Vetr raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $50.65 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 5th. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Sunday, July 9th. BidaskClub raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 31st. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The) reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Wednesday, June 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-two have issued a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $52.73.

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Craig L. Silliman sold 610 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.34, for a total transaction of $27,657.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $409,828.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 1,830 shares of company stock worth $84,229 over the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.