Main Street Financial Solutions LLC Has $1.43 Million Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Main Street Financial Solutions LLC trimmed its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 24.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 35,786 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 11,341 shares during the period. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,431,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Master S Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at about $425,000. Twin Focus Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Twin Focus Capital Partners LLC now owns 8,266 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 26,642 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,065,000 after buying an additional 2,300 shares in the last quarter. Finward Bancorp purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth about $620,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 568.3% during the 4th quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 35,273 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,411,000 after purchasing an additional 29,995 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE VZ traded up $0.40 during trading on Friday, hitting $44.01. 16,479,869 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,166,753. The firm has a market capitalization of $185.26 billion, a PE ratio of 10.63, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.63. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $43.46 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.03. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.59 and a 12-month high of $47.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted 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 quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target 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. TD Cowen upgraded Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. DZ Bank raised Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Argus raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Ten equities research 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.92.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 45,675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,851,664.50. This represents a 30.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the business's 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

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).