NBT Bank N A NY Reduces Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

NBT Bank N A NY cut its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) by 7.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 86,467 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 6,824 shares during the period. NBT Bank N A NY’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HBC Financial Services PLLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. HBC Financial Services PLLC now owns 700 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 111.8% in the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 1,057 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. Worth Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Ten Capital Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 38.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ten Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,236 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. 60.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $34.92. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 11,806,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,483,984. The company has a 50 day moving average of $37.86 and a 200 day moving average of $38.66. The stock has a market cap of $146.80 billion, a PE ratio of 6.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $34.55 and a 12-month high of $52.18.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 25th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $32.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.64 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 15.85% and a return on equity of 23.31%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.35 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 10th were issued a $0.6525 dividend. This represents a $2.61 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 6th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on VZ shares. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, April 6th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 26th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $51.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.82.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 7,585 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.30, for a total transaction of $275,335.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $311,526.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 7,199 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.50, for a total transaction of $262,763.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 81,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,983,437. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 7,585 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.30, for a total transaction of $275,335.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,582 shares in the company, valued at $311,526.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,692 shares of company stock valued at $1,024,488 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

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Verizon Communications, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of communications, information, and entertainment products and services. It operates through the Verizon Consumer Group (Consumer) and Verizon Business Group (Business) segments. The Consumer segment provides consumer-focused wireless and wire line communications services and products.