Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 1%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) shares traded down 1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $41.23 and last traded at $41.33. 2,750,914 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 18,789,855 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.74.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Tigress Financial upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $45.14.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 1.5 %

The stock has a market cap of $173.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.33, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.41. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $40.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.23 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. Verizon Communications's revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.20 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 99.25%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VZ. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 627.8% during the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 130.1% during the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% 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).