Wealth Effects LLC Sells 410 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Wealth Effects LLC lessened its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,155 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 410 shares during the quarter. Wealth Effects LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,848,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its position in Verizon Communications by 50.4% during 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. Finally, Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its position in Verizon Communications by 2,159.1% during the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 994 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 950 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. KeyCorp cut their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.31.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.3 %

Verizon Communications stock traded down $0.11 during trading on Monday, reaching $43.88. The stock had a trading volume of 5,765,350 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,354,123. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $31.26 and a 52-week high of $45.36. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $42.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.27. 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 stock has a market cap of $184.70 billion, a PE ratio of 16.37, a P/E/G ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42.

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, 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 company had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a $0.678 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.18%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 101.12%.

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).