AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC Trims Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 65.5% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 25,265 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 47,933 shares during the quarter. AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,146,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in 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 worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $32,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.88, for a total transaction of $329,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 19,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $834,071.04. This trade represents a 28.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 21,500 shares of company stock worth $938,400 over the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $45.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Nine research 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.41.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.6%

VZ stock opened at $42.35 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $178.56 billion, a PE ratio of 10.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.38. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.59 and a 12 month high of $47.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

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

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).