TCW Group Inc. Grows Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

TCW Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 92,928 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 2,264 shares during the quarter. TCW Group Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,832,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Vima LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE:VZ traded up $0.57 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $40.61. 13,377,523 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,707,240. The firm has a market cap of $170.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $40.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $40.47. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $30.14 and a 52 week high of $43.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.21 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 99.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on VZ. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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).