Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Purchased by Proffitt & Goodson Inc.

Proffitt & Goodson Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 16,540 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 318 shares during the period. Proffitt & Goodson Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $716,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 121.8% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 176,531 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $8,007,000 after acquiring an additional 96,931 shares in the last quarter. Element Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $2,799,000. Autumn Glory Partners LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 25.8% during the 1st quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC now owns 62,277 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,825,000 after acquiring an additional 12,760 shares in the last quarter. Davidson Trust Co. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 95.5% during the 1st quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 26,785 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,215,000 after acquiring an additional 13,082 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 68.4% during the 1st quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,897 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $313,000 after acquiring an additional 2,802 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $41.44 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $174.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.66, a PEG ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.37. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $43.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.32. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $47.35.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.63.

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).