Twin Capital Management Inc. Has $5.16 Million Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Twin Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 129,001 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 6,109 shares during the period. Twin Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,159,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total value of $453,154.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,590 shares in the company, valued at $596,439.20. The trade was a 43.17 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ traded up $0.90 during trading on Thursday, reaching $43.11. The stock had a trading volume of 22,164,110 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,017,757. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $42.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.59 and a 1-year high of $47.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share 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 period last year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.29%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $45.00 target price (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. DZ Bank raised Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Argus raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $46.85.

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).