VEON (NASDAQ:VEON) Downgraded to “Buy” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of VEON (NASDAQ:VEON) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Sunday,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of VEON in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Zacks Research raised VEON from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of VEON in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Northland Securities started coverage on shares of VEON in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, VEON has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.00.

VEON Price Performance

VEON stock opened at $68.63 on Friday. VEON has a 52-week low of $42.60 and a 52-week high of $71.10. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $58.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.74 and a beta of 1.63.

VEON (NASDAQ:VEON) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The Wireless communications provider reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. VEON had a return on equity of 14.93% and a net margin of 1.24%.During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $8.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that VEON will post 7.39 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other VEON news, Director K II purchased 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $56.02 per share, with a total value of $280,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 96,000 shares in the company, valued at $5,377,920. This trade represents a 5.49% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On VEON

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VEON. Severin Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of VEON by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Severin Investments LLC now owns 8,857 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $466,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP boosted its holdings in VEON by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 38,040 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $2,000,000 after buying an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in VEON by 7.2% during the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 7,400 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $386,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC grew its position in VEON by 14.4% in the first quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 4,689 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $217,000 after buying an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dorsey Wright & Associates grew its position in VEON by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Dorsey Wright & Associates now owns 24,328 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $1,279,000 after buying an additional 934 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 21.30% of the company’s stock.

About VEON

VEON Ltd. (NASDAQ:VEON) is a global digital communications and services company that provides mobile connectivity, broadband, and digital products in high-growth markets. Its telecommunications operations serve consumers and businesses through mobile voice and data services, messaging, fixed broadband, and related connectivity solutions.

VEON operates through well-known local brands, including Kyivstar in Ukraine, Jazz in Pakistan, Banglalink in Bangladesh, and Beeline in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan.