Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Up 0.2% After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) traded up 0.2% during mid-day trading on Friday after Scotiabank raised their price target on the stock from $46.50 to $47.25. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the stock. Verizon Communications traded as high as $43.96 and last traded at $43.94. 2,389,998 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 18,363,631 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.85.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on VZ. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Tigress Financial upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.31.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Cooper Financial Group increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.9% in the first quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 12,057 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $506,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 13.9% during the first quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 55,642 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,335,000 after acquiring an additional 6,790 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at about $113,000. Lane & Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at about $274,000. Finally, CHICAGO TRUST Co NA boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.1% in the first quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA now owns 50,270 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,109,000 after acquiring an additional 4,185 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $42.94 and a 200-day moving average of $41.29. The stock has a market cap of $185.17 billion, a PE ratio of 16.41, a PEG ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current 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 paid a $0.678 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.17%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 101.12%.

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).