Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC Sells 2,808 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC decreased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 13.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,478 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 2,808 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 627.8% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 655 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 130.1% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 863 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 488 shares during the period. HBC Financial Services PLLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 320.0% in the 3rd quarter. HBC Financial Services PLLC now owns 1,050 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on VZ. Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Redburn Atlantic raised Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.21.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of VZ stock traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $39.18. The stock had a trading volume of 5,342,709 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,845,281. The firm has a market capitalization of $164.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.67. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.14 and a 12-month high of $43.42. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $40.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.90.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The company had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 99.25%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 15,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.33, for a total value of $604,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 59,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,387,576.33. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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).