SimpliFi Inc. Grows Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

SimpliFi Inc. raised its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,046 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications makes up 0.6% of SimpliFi Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. SimpliFi Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,257,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,759,000 after buying an additional 16,704 shares in the last quarter. Gradient Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 20.6% during the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 127,356 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $5,777,000 after buying an additional 21,727 shares in the last quarter. Apella Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 40.5% during the 1st quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 17,571 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $754,000 after buying an additional 5,066 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 22,023.0% during the 1st quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,247 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $873,000 after buying an additional 19,160 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

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

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.3%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 63.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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).