Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Position Increased by Violich Capital Management Inc.

Violich Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 177,087 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,030 shares during the period. Verizon Communications comprises approximately 0.9% of Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest position. Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $7,082,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VZ. Summit Trail Advisors LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 105,702 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,227,000 after acquiring an additional 16,349 shares in the last quarter. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp now owns 55,556 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,222,000 after purchasing an additional 2,846 shares during the period. Principle Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC now owns 43,953 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,758,000 after buying an additional 3,474 shares during the period. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,141 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $446,000 after buying an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $4,333,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.2 %

VZ stock opened at $39.94 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $40.18 and its 200-day moving average is $41.56. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $45.36. The firm has a market cap of $168.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.65, a P/E/G ratio of 4.17 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 posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business 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 dividend yield of 6.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VZ. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Tigress Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Ten 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.08.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $262,809.20. This represents a 54.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 39,085 shares of company stock worth $1,582,995 over the last 90 days. 0.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Verizon Communications Profile

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).