Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC Sells 371 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC reduced its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,044 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 371 shares during the period. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $218,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. increased 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 buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the 1st quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Verizon Communications stock opened at $43.84 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $43.63 and its 200 day moving average is $43.36. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $47.35. The firm has a market cap of $184.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 63.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on VZ shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.53.

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).