Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd. Cuts Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd. decreased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 7.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 430,700 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 37,050 shares during the period. Verizon Communications accounts for about 7.5% of Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $17,762,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 50.4% in the 1st quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $43.75 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $40.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market cap of $184.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.14 and a fifty-two week high of $43.82.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The firm’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a $0.678 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.20%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 101.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $42.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday. Finally, KeyCorp dropped their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.66.

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).