Bfsg LLC Decreases Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Bfsg LLC decreased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 5.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 116,072 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 7,165 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,642,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 101,273,082 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,548,163,000 after buying an additional 5,936,009 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 95,824,245 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,289,054,000 after acquiring an additional 2,081,241 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 29,074,297 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,305,727,000 after acquiring an additional 565,842 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 18,161,563 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $815,636,000 after acquiring an additional 502,949 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 12,493,998 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $561,105,000 after acquiring an additional 46,100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE:VZ traded up $0.45 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $42.94. The stock had a trading volume of 6,226,402 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,520,387. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $45.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $180.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.37, a P/E/G ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.45.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th were given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. DZ Bank raised shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $47.50 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $46.08.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total transaction of $810,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 45,675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,851,664.50. This trade represents a 30.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 39,085 shares of company stock worth $1,582,995. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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).