Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Holdings Decreased by Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA

Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA trimmed its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,983 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 2,272 shares during the period. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,799,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,656 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 492 shares in the last quarter. Pines Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $232,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 16.4% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 221,712 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $8,866,000 after acquiring an additional 31,269 shares during the period. Finally, CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 150,759 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $6,029,000 after purchasing an additional 11,206 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total transaction of $396,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 10,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $441,352.80. This represents a 47.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 31,500 shares of company stock worth $1,376,300. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $43.41 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.59 and a 52-week high of $47.36. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $43.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.01. The stock has a market cap of $183.03 billion, a PE ratio of 10.49, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.24%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 64.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. DZ Bank raised Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Evercore ISI raised Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Argus upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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).