Confluence Wealth Services Inc. Sells 1,106 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Confluence Wealth Services Inc. reduced its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 59,183 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,106 shares during the quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,527,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the 4th quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 415 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $42.32 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $43.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.21. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.59 and a 52 week high of $47.36. The stock has a market cap of $178.41 billion, a PE ratio of 10.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.14% and a return on equity of 19.66%. The firm had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.31 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.52%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.88, for a total value of $329,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 19,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $834,071.04. The trade was a 28.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,500 shares of company stock valued at $938,400. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.41.

Verizon Communications 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).