LexAurum Advisors LLC Reduces Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

LexAurum Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 5.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,916 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 813 shares during the period. LexAurum Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $542,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VZ. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 627.8% during the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 130.1% in the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vima LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $40.24 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $30.14 and a one year high of $43.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $169.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.01, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.42. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $39.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.92.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 8.44%. The business had revenue of $33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be given a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.61%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 99.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on VZ. Tigress Financial raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.77.

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).