Meyer Handelman Co. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ – Get Rating) by 3.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 841,231 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 24,153 shares during the period. Verizon Communications comprises approximately 1.6% of Meyer Handelman Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Meyer Handelman Co.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $ 42,852,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC now owns 10,687 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $ 555,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Weaver Consulting Group grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Weaver Consulting Group now owns 14,798 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $ 769,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Reitz Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Reitz Capital Advisors LLC now owns 9,818 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $ 550,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Diversified LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Diversified LLC now owns 4,114 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $ 214,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. Finally, E&G Advisors LP grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. E&G Advisors LP now owns 19,903 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $ 1,034,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. 63.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Tami A. Erwin sold 23,647 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $ 49.77, for a total transaction of $ 1,176,911.19. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 21,817 shares in the company, valued at $ 1,085,832.09. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Craig L. Silliman sold 1,558 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $ 50.00, for a total value of $ 77,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 36,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $ 1,825,950. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 28,321 shares of company stock worth $ 1,415,192 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company stock.
Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, April 25th. Wolfe Research reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $ 60.00 to $ 51.00 and set a “peer perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $ 61.00 to $ 55.00 in a report on Monday, April 25th. DZ Bank lowered Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $ 44.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, April 29th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $ 57.20.
Shares of VZ stock opened at $ 49.03 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.76. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $ 45.55 and a 52-week high of $ 56.85. The company has a market capitalization of $ 205.91 billion, a PE ratio of 9.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.41. The business’s fifty day moving average is $ 50.34 and its 200 day moving average is $ 51.86.
Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $ 1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $ 1.35. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 28.15% and a net margin of 15.93%. The company had revenue of $ 33.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the estimate consensus of $ 33.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $ 1.31 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 1st. Investors of record on Friday, July 8th will be given a $ 0.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 7th. This represents a $ 2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.22%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.71%.
Verizon Communications Profile: (Get Rating)
Verizon Communications Inc, through its subsidiaries, offers communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and governmental entities worldwide. Its Consumer segment provides postpaid and prepaid service plans; internet access on notebook computers and tablets; wireless equipment, including smartphones and other handsets; and wireless-enabled internet devices, such as tablets, and other wireless-enabled connected devices comprising smart watches.
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