Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stock Holdings Decreased by Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA

Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA reduced its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 470 shares during the period. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $317,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 137.6% in the third quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. grew its position in Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the first 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 in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered 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. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $41.28 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $34.67 and a 1-year high of $45.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $173.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.40, a PEG ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.22 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.678 per share. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 101.12%.

Verizon Communications Company 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).