Jacobi Capital Management LLC Purchases 5,485 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.2% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 135,887 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 5,485 shares during the quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $6,164,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the first 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 during the period. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. 1 North Wealth Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $43.50 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $183.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.58 and a 1 year high of $47.35.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.15 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.3%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.65.

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).