Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Position Reduced by Valley Brook Capital Group Inc.

Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. cut its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,422 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 598 shares during the quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $581,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ stock opened at $39.86 on Friday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $168.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $43.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.25.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter 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, equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 is Friday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.9%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Arete Research raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three 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, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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).