Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Acquired by Machina Capital S.A.S.

Machina Capital S.A.S. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 72.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 47,375 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after buying an additional 19,880 shares during the period. Verizon Communications makes up 0.8% of Machina Capital S.A.S.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Machina Capital S.A.S.'s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,895,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 108,694,230 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,346,682,000 after buying an additional 7,421,148 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.2% in 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 raised its position in Verizon Communications by 2.0% in 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 purchasing an additional 565,842 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $1,083,337,000. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC grew its position in 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 worth $815,636,000 after purchasing an additional 502,949 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of VZ traded up $1.90 on Friday, reaching $46.13. The stock had a trading volume of 44,982,282 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,835,933. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.59 and a twelve month high of $46.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $194.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.14, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $40.61 and a 200 day moving average of $41.83. 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 (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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com raised Verizon Communications from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $46.11.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total transaction of $810,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895 over the last ninety days. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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).