Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Outfitter Financial LLC

Outfitter Financial LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,463 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 523 shares during the quarter. Outfitter Financial LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $458,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 40.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC now owns 42,084 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,683,000 after buying an additional 12,121 shares in the last quarter. PYA Waltman Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. PYA Waltman Capital LLC now owns 26,752 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,070,000 after acquiring an additional 479 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 49.0% during the fourth quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 34,234 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,369,000 after acquiring an additional 11,254 shares during the last quarter. Compass Capital Corp MA ADV acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $328,000. Finally, Trinity Legacy Partners LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Trinity Legacy Partners LLC now owns 55,837 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,233,000 after purchasing an additional 2,194 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 1.1 %

VZ opened at $42.49 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $178.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.26, a P/E/G ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $39.90 and its 200-day moving average is $41.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share (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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. Analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were issued a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.38%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. TD Cowen raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of 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. StockNews.com cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Scotiabank increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $47.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Argus raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total value of $810,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 45,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,851,664.50. The trade was a 30.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold 39,085 shares of company stock worth $1,582,995 in the last three months. 0.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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).