Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Kraft Asset Management LLC

Kraft Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 16.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,017 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,195 shares during the period. Kraft Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $230,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in Verizon Communications by 74.5% in the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 162,405 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $6,698,000 after purchasing an additional 69,328 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 23,122 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $954,000 after acquiring an additional 1,918 shares during the last quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 14.4% during the 2nd quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,490 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 943 shares during the last quarter. Sfmg LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 128,936 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $5,317,000 after acquiring an additional 3,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 120,574 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,972,000 after acquiring an additional 7,809 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE VZ opened at $38.95 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $40.97 and a 200-day moving average of $41.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $163.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.46. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $45.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.66.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.22 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.96%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 116.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. KeyCorp downgraded Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.54.

About Verizon Communications

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).