Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Avalon Capital Management

Avalon Capital Management decreased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,952 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. Avalon Capital Management’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $318,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL now owns 960,940 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $38,428,000 after buying an additional 23,405 shares during the period. Exchange Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,451 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $338,000 after purchasing an additional 725 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $283,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. EdgeRock Capital LLC now owns 5,224 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fairhaven Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Fairhaven Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,691 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $308,000 after acquiring an additional 395 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wolfe Research upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. DZ Bank raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.08.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $43.31 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $39.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.65. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $45.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market cap of $182.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.46, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.45.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.26%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $262,809.20. This trade represents a 54.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 39,085 shares of company stock valued at $1,582,995 over the last ninety days. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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).