Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) shot up 0.4% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $41.79 and last traded at $41.47. 2,903,510 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 18,423,102 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.31.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Tigress Financial increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $45.66.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on VZ
Verizon Communications Stock Performance
The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $40.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $173.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.45, a PEG ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.41.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 during 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%. Verizon Communications's quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Verizon Communications Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.678 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.59%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 99.25%.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications
A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 351,267,175 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $14,739,171,000 after buying an additional 1,216,963 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $1,882,164,000. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 38,357,031 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,581,848,000 after buying an additional 1,106,887 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 35,561,841 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,466,446,000 after buying an additional 535,322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 92.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 22,599,173 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $851,989,000 after buying an additional 10,882,873 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
About Verizon Communications
(
Get Free Report)
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).
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