Shell Asset Management Co. Acquires 41,451 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Shell Asset Management Co. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 55.6% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 116,018 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 41,451 shares during the quarter. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,020,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. raised its position in Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Bulwark Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 5.0%

NYSE:VZ opened at $41.49 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $47.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $43.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $174.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.67, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.37.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.15 EPS. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.7%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 64.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on VZ shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.63.

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).