8,451 Shares in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Acquired by Rollins Financial Advisors LLC

Rollins Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 8,451 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $338,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE VZ traded up $0.75 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $43.67. 14,838,085 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,060,442. The stock has a market capitalization of $183.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.54, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. 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 1 year low of $37.59 and a 1 year high of $47.36. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $42.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.05.

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Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.21%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VZ. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday. UBS Group raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com downgraded Verizon Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. TD Cowen upgraded Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $48.50 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $46.92.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $262,809.20. The trade was a 54.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. The trade was a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895. Company insiders own 0.02% 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).