Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Given New $48.00 Price Target at Raymond James

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) had its price objective upped by Raymond James from $44.00 to $48.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. Raymond James currently has an outperform rating on the cell phone carrier’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on VZ. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They set a buy rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $46.03.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of VZ stock opened at $44.68 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications has a 1 year low of $30.14 and a 1 year high of $45.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.63. The business’s fifty day moving average is $41.59 and its 200-day moving average is $40.86. The stock has a market cap of $188.07 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.21 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.07%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 101.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 50.4% in the first quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).