Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by John G Ullman & Associates Inc.

John G Ullman & Associates Inc. cut its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,086 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 308 shares during the period. John G Ullman & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $203,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% during the fourth quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 655.5% during the fourth quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 967 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 839 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total value of $453,154.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 14,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $596,439.20. This represents a 43.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. The trade was a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895 in the last quarter. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of VZ opened at $43.12 on Monday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.58 and a twelve month high of $45.36. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $40.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.50 billion, a PE ratio of 10.41, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly 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 period in the previous year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.29%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on 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 upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $47.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.08.

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).