Brokerages Set Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Price Target at $47.63

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-two analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have assigned a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $47.63.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on VZ shares. Cowen cut their price objective on Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $49.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 25th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 25th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 26th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $41.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, December 19th.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 6,226 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.69, for a total value of $228,431.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 67,966 shares in the company, valued at $2,493,672.54. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Adviser Investments LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Adviser Investments LLC now owns 17,882 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $679,000 after purchasing an additional 837 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Trust Company N.A. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $735,000. Pinnacle Wealth Management Group Inc. lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Group Inc. now owns 41,713 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,584,000 after acquiring an additional 3,661 shares during the period. Walled Lake Planning & Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.5% in the third quarter. Walled Lake Planning & Wealth Management LLC now owns 91,000 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $3,455,000 after purchasing an additional 3,931 shares during the period. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 14.1% during the second quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 61,247 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $3,108,000 after purchasing an additional 7,558 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.96% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE VZ opened at $36.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $154.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.27, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.36. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $39.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.97. Verizon Communications has a 12 month low of $34.55 and a 12 month high of $55.51.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $35.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.14 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 24.60% and a net margin of 15.53%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.31 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 10th will be issued a $0.6525 dividend. This represents a $2.61 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 6th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 51.58%.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

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Verizon Communications, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of communications, information, and entertainment products and services. It operates through the Verizon Consumer Group (Consumer) and Verizon Business Group (Business) segments. The Consumer segment provides consumer-focused wireless and wire line communications services and products.