Advocate Group LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Advocate Group LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 339,090 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 3,435 shares during the period. Verizon Communications comprises approximately 2.6% of Advocate Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $14,672,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake 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. purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $39.86 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $168.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.25. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 63.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Bank of America raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.63.

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).