Vontobel Holding Ltd. Increases Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 33.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,353,003 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 338,365 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $58,544,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.2% during the second quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 205,282 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $8,883,000 after buying an additional 8,210 shares during the period. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 13.3% during the second quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 50,230 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,173,000 after buying an additional 5,906 shares during the period. Ignite Planners LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 7.2% during the second quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 41,482 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,694,000 after purchasing an additional 2,779 shares in the last quarter. Nelson Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.0% during the second quarter. Nelson Capital Management LLC now owns 61,891 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,678,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Financial Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 4.9% during the second quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc now owns 11,070 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $41.35 on Thursday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.58 and a 1 year high of $47.35. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $43.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.30. The firm has a market cap of $174.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced 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. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Arete Research raised shares of 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. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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).