Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Up 1.9% - What's Next?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) was up 1.9% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $45.21 and last traded at $45.02. Approximately 5,939,658 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 18,333,875 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.18.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on VZ shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $45.00 price objective (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.50 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Argus raised Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $46.71.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of $189.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.86, 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $42.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.08.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.03%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $453,154.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,590 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $596,439.20. This represents a 43.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of VZ. Norges Bank bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth about $2,300,846,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,083,337,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3,601.6% in the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 8,937,180 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $357,398,000 after purchasing an additional 8,695,736 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 108,694,230 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,346,682,000 after purchasing an additional 7,421,148 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 52.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 19,828,378 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $792,937,000 after buying an additional 6,846,514 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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).