Securian Asset Management Inc. Sells 2,571 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Securian Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.2% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 220,424 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 2,571 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $9,538,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Bulwark Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. 1 North Wealth Services LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.6%

VZ stock opened at $40.81 on Tuesday. 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 market capitalization of $172.06 billion, a PE ratio of 9.51, a PEG ratio of 3.06 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 simple moving average of $43.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.06.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.15 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.8%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 64.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.63.

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).