Glassy Mountain Advisors Inc. Acquires Shares of 44,057 Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Glassy Mountain Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 44,057 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $1,736,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. HBC Financial Services PLLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 273.5% during the third quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 1,016 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 744 shares during the period. Hoese & Co LLP increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 41.0% during the third quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 1,077 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the period. Heritage Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth approximately $59,000. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth approximately $58,000. Institutional investors own 60.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 7,199 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.50, for a total transaction of $262,763.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 81,738 shares in the company, valued at $2,983,437. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised Verizon Communications from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $41.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 15th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 25th. Citigroup raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. Finally, Cowen lowered their price objective on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.63.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $36.79 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The company has a market capitalization of $154.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.27, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.36. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $39.65 and its 200 day moving average is $38.97. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $34.55 and a 12 month high of $55.51.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 24.60%. The business had revenue of $35.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 10th will be issued a $0.6525 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 6th. This represents a $2.61 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.09%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.58%.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

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Verizon Communications, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of communications, information, and entertainment products and services. It operates through the Verizon Consumer Group (Consumer) and Verizon Business Group (Business) segments. The Consumer segment provides consumer-focused wireless and wire line communications services and products.