Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 2.8% - Here's What Happened

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 2.8% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $44.60 and last traded at $44.37. Approximately 10,468,052 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 47% from the average daily volume of 19,582,704 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.62.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research cut shares of Verizon Communications from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $48.50 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. DZ Bank raised Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. TD Cowen upgraded Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $46.85.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $177.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.17, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.08.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.44%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.46%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 6,590 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $262,809.20. This trade represents a 54.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895 in the last 90 days. 0.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% during the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the 4th quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

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).