Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Sold by DJE Kapital AG

DJE Kapital AG lowered its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 29.8% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,709,096 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 726,582 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications accounts for about 1.8% of DJE Kapital AG’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. DJE Kapital AG’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $72,927,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth $25,000. Advantage Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 549.5% during the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 591 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 222.2% in the 2nd quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 725 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.5%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $40.03 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $168.80 billion, a PE ratio of 8.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.35. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.58 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.02. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The firm had revenue of $33.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th were given a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.9%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 58.97%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on VZ. Weiss Ratings downgraded Verizon Communications from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lowered shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.41.

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).