Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Bought by Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC

Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 255,289 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 8,570 shares during the period. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,209,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total transaction of $453,154.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $596,439.20. This trade represents a 43.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895. Insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

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Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE VZ traded up $0.76 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $43.68. 30,139,449 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,133,744. The company has a market cap of $183.88 billion, a PE ratio of 10.55, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.59 and a 12 month high of $47.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $43.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.02.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued 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 business posted $1.08 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday. Argus upgraded Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of 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 lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Ten 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.92.

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).