Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Now Covered by Sanford C. Bernstein

Equities researchers at Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) in a research note issued on Tuesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target on the cell phone carrier’s stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 13.29% from the company’s current price.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com upgraded Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.46.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Verizon Communications stock opened at $42.37 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications has a 1 year low of $36.46 and a 1 year high of $45.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $42.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market cap of $178.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.26, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.44.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. Verizon Communications’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.3% in the second quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 34,592 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,427,000 after buying an additional 2,942 shares during the last quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 13.4% in the 2nd quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 6,108 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 721 shares during the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth $231,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 348,563 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $14,375,000 after acquiring an additional 16,465 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Red Door Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 10.0% in the second quarter. Red Door Wealth Management LLC now owns 98,369 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,057,000 after purchasing an additional 8,967 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Company 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).