Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund decreased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,257,382 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 62,800 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $50,283,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 27.7% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 222,366 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $8,892,000 after buying an additional 48,294 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the third quarter valued at $3,376,000. Burney Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 30.4% in the fourth quarter. Burney Co. now owns 186,621 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $7,463,000 after buying an additional 43,472 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1,934.5% in the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 1,080,015 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $48,503,000 after buying an additional 1,026,930 shares during the period. Finally, Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at $4,333,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $42.77 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $39.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.63. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $45.36. The firm has a market cap of $180.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.33, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.45.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were issued a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.34%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. DZ Bank raised Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Tigress Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wolfe Research upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Argus raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,590 shares in the company, valued at $262,809.20. This trade represents a 54.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold 39,085 shares of company stock worth $1,582,995 in the last quarter. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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).