Secure Asset Management LLC Lowers Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Secure Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,292 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 770 shares during the quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $866,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 351,267,175 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $14,739,171,000 after purchasing an additional 1,216,963 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 38,357,031 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,581,848,000 after acquiring an additional 1,106,887 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 35,561,841 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,466,446,000 after acquiring an additional 535,322 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 16,458,264 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $678,739,000 after acquiring an additional 104,447 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 13,127,360 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $541,372,000 after acquiring an additional 936,823 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $43.99 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $42.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.29. 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 12-month low of $31.26 and a 12-month high of $45.36. The company has a market cap of $185.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.678 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.17%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. KeyCorp reduced 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Bank of America lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.31.

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).