Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Position Trimmed by Lion Street Advisors LLC

Lion Street Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 11.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,629 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 859 shares during the period. Lion Street Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $273,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 130.1% in the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its position in Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the first quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.6 %

VZ traded up $0.23 during trading on Friday, hitting $40.75. The company had a trading volume of 11,818,717 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,871,514. The company has a market capitalization of $171.53 billion, a PE ratio of 15.21, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $40.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $30.14 and a one year high of $43.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th were paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.53%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 99.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Scotiabank increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 4th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.78.

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).