Sanctuary Advisors LLC Has $42.30 Million Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 16.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 980,222 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 135,174 shares during the quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $42,297,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at $33,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ stock traded up $0.09 during trading on Thursday, reaching $42.08. 11,149,384 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,359,039. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $36.46 and a twelve month high of $45.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.85. The company has a market capitalization of $177.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.44.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. Verizon Communications's quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.22 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.44%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 116.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Sunday. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday. They set a "market perform" rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Bank of America upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.46.

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).