Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Down 0.7% After Insider Selling

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s stock price traded down 0.7% during mid-day trading on Friday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $42.85 and last traded at $42.97. 4,868,629 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 22,557,164 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.27.

Specifically, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Argus upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $47.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.08.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $40.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $181.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.41, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.45.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.29%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $381,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth about $192,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at about $128,434,000. Brucke Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $439,000. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 85.3% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 997 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 459 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).