Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. Grows Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. increased its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 105,932 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,937 shares during the period. Verizon Communications accounts for approximately 1.5% of Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,584,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted its position 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 valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on VZ. Arete Research upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.53.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $43.68 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $184.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $47.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $43.65 and a 200 day moving average of $43.35.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

Verizon Communications 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).