Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stake Trimmed by Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC

Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 234,993 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 6,481 shares during the period. Verizon Communications comprises 2.0% of Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,659,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the fourth quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the subject of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Scotiabank upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI raised shares of Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.41.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total transaction of $396,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 10,008 shares in the company, valued at $441,352.80. The trade was a 47.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders sold a total of 21,500 shares of company stock valued at $938,400 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $44.12 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.59 and a one year high of $47.36. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $43.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.30. The stock has a market cap of $186.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.66, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.38.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. The company had revenue of $33.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.31 billion. Analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.14%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 64.52%.

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).