Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Down 0.9% – Time to Sell?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s stock price fell 0.9% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $41.68 and last traded at $41.74. 3,564,060 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 18,544,869 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.13.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.50 to $47.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.37.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $43.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.33. The company has a market capitalization of $175.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.99, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The company had revenue of $33.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.22 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a $0.678 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $354,000. Mission Wealth Management LP lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.3% during the first quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 30,531 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,281,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 23.2% during the first quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. now owns 2,588 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. KFA Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at approximately $251,000. Finally, Janney Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.8% in the first quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC now owns 325,773 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $13,669,000 after acquiring an additional 8,817 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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).