Forsta AP Fonden Has $41.43 Million Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Forsta AP Fonden cut its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,035,950 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 18,400 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $41,428,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the fourth quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 655.5% in the 4th quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 967 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 839 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth $44,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:VZ traded down $0.07 during trading on Friday, hitting $39.41. 45,176,702 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 22,944,896. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $40.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.57. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $45.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company has a market cap of $165.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.46.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 business posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on VZ shares. StockNews.com downgraded Verizon Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Tigress Financial reissued a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $46.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total value of $453,154.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $596,439.20. The trade was a 43.17 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Company 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).