Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC lessened its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) by 13.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 33,223 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 5,022 shares during the period. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,292,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Independence Bank of Kentucky increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 39,504 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,536,000 after purchasing an additional 732 shares during the last quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC now owns 26,844 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,058,000 after purchasing an additional 1,761 shares during the last quarter. Silvant Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Silvant Capital Management LLC now owns 9,687 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $382,000 after purchasing an additional 1,575 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 24,602 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $969,000 after purchasing an additional 2,198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Griffin Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 45.9% in the 4th quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 31,977 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,260,000 after purchasing an additional 10,063 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.83% of the company’s stock.
Insider Activity at Verizon Communications
In other news, EVP Craig L. Silliman sold 3,340 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.21, for a total value of $130,961.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 73,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,862,918.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, EVP Craig L. Silliman sold 3,340 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.21, for a total value of $130,961.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 73,015 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,862,918.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 7,585 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.30, for a total transaction of $275,335.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $311,526.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,267 shares of company stock valued at $533,293 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.
Verizon Communications Price Performance
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 25th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 15.85% and a return on equity of 23.31%. The firm had revenue of $32.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.35 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.68 EPS for the current year.
Verizon Communications Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 1st. Investors of record on Monday, July 10th will be given a $0.6525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 7th. This represents a $2.61 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.28%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.78%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research firms have commented on VZ. HSBC dropped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.50 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, June 5th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, April 6th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $51.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 23rd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.12.
Verizon Communications Profile
Verizon Communications Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides 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).
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