PharVision Advisers LLC Takes $888,000 Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

PharVision Advisers LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 22,204 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $888,000. Verizon Communications comprises approximately 0.8% of PharVision Advisers LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of VZ opened at $44.21 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.59 and a one year high of $47.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $43.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.63. The company has a market capitalization of $186.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.68, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its 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 company had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.80% and a net margin of 12.99%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.13%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This represents a 40.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.48, for a total value of $212,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,508 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,550,859.84. This represents a 12.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 31,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,376,300 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on VZ shares. DZ Bank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $45.00 price target (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. StockNews.com cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.41.

About Verizon Communications

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).