Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Sells 11,023 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI decreased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 11.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 81,663 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 11,023 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Swedbank AB increased its position in Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,174,541 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $232,389,000 after acquiring an additional 39,403 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 43.9% during the 3rd quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 12,374 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $556,000 after purchasing an additional 3,772 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at about $666,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 588.2% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 33,969 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,526,000 after buying an additional 29,033 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ stock opened at $43.51 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $40.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.89. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.59 and a fifty-two week high of $47.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $183.16 billion, a PE ratio of 10.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. Analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.23%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. DZ Bank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Argus raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.11.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $633,159.61. The trade was a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total value of $453,154.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $596,439.20. This represents a 43.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895 in the last ninety days. 0.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Verizon Communications

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).