LRI Investments LLC Has $969,000 Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

LRI Investments LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 13.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,236 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,833 shares during the quarter. LRI Investments LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $969,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI raised Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total transaction of $396,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 10,008 shares in the company, valued at $441,352.80. This trade represents a 47.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 31,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,376,300. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $43.65 on Monday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.59 and a 1 year high of $47.36. The company has a market capitalization of $184.04 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $43.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $41.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. Analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.21%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

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).