Verizon Communications Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:VZ)

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders acquired 65,886 call options on the company. This is an increase of 45% compared to the typical daily volume of 45,303 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the 1st quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Scotiabank raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $45.78.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ stock traded up $1.15 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $42.93. 23,144,565 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,380,723. Verizon Communications has a 52 week low of $30.14 and a 52 week high of $43.42. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $40.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $180.70 billion, a PE ratio of 16.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.41.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications will post 4.57 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th were paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 99.25%.

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).