Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Stock Position Reduced by Motco

Motco lowered its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 103,821 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 2,042 shares during the period. Motco’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,439,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 121.8% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 176,531 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $8,007,000 after acquiring an additional 96,931 shares in the last quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 2,916.8% during the 2nd quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC now owns 347,716 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $15,046,000 after acquiring an additional 336,190 shares in the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 7,297,469 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $309,551,000 after acquiring an additional 722,559 shares in the last quarter. Element Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $2,799,000. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 23.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 205,416 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $8,888,000 after acquiring an additional 39,445 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. BNP Paribas cut Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.41.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of VZ stock opened at $39.38 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.58 and a 1 year high of $47.35. The stock has a market cap of $166.05 billion, a PE ratio of 9.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $42.62 and its 200-day moving average is $42.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.0%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 64.34%.

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).