Colonial River Investments LLC Sells 7,649 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Colonial River Investments LLC cut its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 16.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,964 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 7,649 shares during the period. Verizon Communications comprises approximately 0.9% of Colonial River Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Colonial River Investments LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,722,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the 1st quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the 1st quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the 4th quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ opened at $42.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.59 and a one year high of $47.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $43.15 and a 200-day moving average of $42.21. The company has a market cap of $178.41 billion, a PE ratio of 10.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.38.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.66% and a net margin of 13.14%. The firm had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.31 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of several recent research reports. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Evercore ISI raised Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wall Street Zen cut Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.41.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 7,500 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.88, for a total transaction of $329,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 19,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $834,071.04. The trade was a 28.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders sold 21,500 shares of company stock worth $938,400 over the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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).