Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) is V2 Financial group LLC’s 4th Largest Position

V2 Financial group LLC reduced its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 95,027 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,582 shares during the period. Verizon Communications accounts for about 2.8% of V2 Financial group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. V2 Financial group LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,268,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter worth $31,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% during the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $40.44 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.66. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $43.08 and a 200 day moving average of $41.41. The firm has a market cap of $170.24 billion, a PE ratio of 17.43, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.43. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $35.41 and a one year high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 7.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a $0.678 dividend. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 116.81%.

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).