Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stock Position Lessened by Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC

Posted by Defense World Staff on Jul 10th, 2023

Verizon Communications logo Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC decreased its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Free Report) by 2.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 22,794 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 499 shares during the quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $886,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.9% during the first quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 39,504 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,536,000 after buying an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC now owns 26,844 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,058,000 after buying an additional 1,761 shares in the last quarter. Silvant Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 19.4% during the fourth 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. Sloy Dahl & Holst LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.8% during the first quarter. Sloy Dahl & Holst LLC now owns 18,438 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $717,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elk River Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 10.3% during the first quarter. Elk River Wealth Management LLC now owns 74,638 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,903,000 after purchasing an additional 6,964 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.83% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $35.90 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market cap of $150.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.38. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $36.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.23. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.72 and a 52 week high of $51.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 25th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $32.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.64 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 23.31% and a net margin of 15.85%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.35 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 10th will be issued a $0.6525 dividend. This represents a $2.61 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 7th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 7,585 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.30, for a total value of $275,335.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $311,526.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $46.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, April 6th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $51.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 23rd. Finally, HSBC reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.50 to $39.00 in a research note on Monday, June 5th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.44.

Verizon Communications Profile

(Free Report)

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).