Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Position Trimmed by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas cut its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 10.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,821,069 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 210,657 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $72,825,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Kirtland Hills Capital Management LLC now owns 10,968 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $439,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. now owns 31,728 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,425,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. JB Capital LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. JB Capital LLC now owns 20,816 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $832,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the period. Curbstone Financial Management Corp lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Curbstone Financial Management Corp now owns 34,786 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,391,000 after buying an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 2,915 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $117,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In related news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total value of $810,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 45,675 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,851,664.50. This trade represents a 30.45 % 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. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on VZ shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Argus raised shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.50 to $48.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $46.53.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ stock traded up $0.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $44.06. The company had a trading volume of 68,411,729 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,347,959. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.59 and a one year high of $47.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $185.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.64, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. 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 stock's 50-day simple moving average is $41.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.00.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the business earned $1.08 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.15%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Verizon Communications 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).