Oarsman Capital Inc. Has $630,000 Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Oarsman Capital Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 45.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,559 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 11,904 shares during the period. Oarsman Capital Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $630,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 121.8% in the first 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 during the last quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2,916.8% in the 2nd quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC now owns 347,716 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $15,046,000 after purchasing an additional 336,190 shares in the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 11.0% in the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 7,297,469 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $309,551,000 after purchasing an additional 722,559 shares in the last quarter. Element Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,799,000. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its position in Verizon Communications by 23.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 205,416 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $8,888,000 after purchasing an additional 39,445 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of VZ stock opened at $39.38 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $47.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market cap of $166.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.18, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $42.62 and a 200-day moving average of $42.92.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.0%. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VZ. Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen cut Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. 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 note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.41.

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).