Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Sold by NTV Asset Management LLC

NTV Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,201 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,552 shares during the quarter. NTV Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,783,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the 1st quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the 1st quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Three equities 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.53.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $43.68 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $43.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.36. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.58 and a fifty-two week high of $47.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $184.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.17%.

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).