Aljian Capital Management LLC Purchases New Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Aljian Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 15,983 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $718,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the 3rd quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock traded up $0.64 during trading on Monday, reaching $42.29. The company's stock had a trading volume of 17,405,382 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,590,928. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company's fifty day moving average is $43.02 and its 200-day moving average is $41.47. The company has a market capitalization of $178.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.43. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $36.20 and a 1 year high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The firm had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a dividend of $0.678 per share. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.41%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 116.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Raymond James raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.37.

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).