NCM Capital Management LLC Increases Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

NCM Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,390 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 245 shares during the quarter. NCM Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $735,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Wolfe Research downgraded Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Argus upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.41.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In related news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total transaction of $212,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 36,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,550,859.84. This represents a 12.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 31,500 shares of company stock worth $1,376,300 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $44.21 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $186.40 billion, a PE ratio of 10.68, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39. The company’s 50 day moving average is $43.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.07. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.59 and a 52 week high of $47.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $33.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. Equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.13%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.52%.

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).