Naviter Wealth LLC Trims Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Naviter Wealth LLC lessened its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 7.9% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 42,852 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 3,684 shares during the period. Naviter Wealth LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,854,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VZ. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during 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 during the period. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. 1 North Wealth Services LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth $30,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $39.75 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $167.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.58 and a twelve month high of $47.35. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $43.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business 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 $0.69 dividend. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.9%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock 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).