Bfsg LLC Reduces Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Bfsg LLC lessened its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,211 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 8,067 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,080,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Acas LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $227,000. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 554,293 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $20,897,000 after purchasing an additional 10,018 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 3,233.3% in the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,000 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 970 shares during the last quarter. South Dakota Investment Council increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 20.4% in the 4th quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 333,208 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $12,562,000 after acquiring an additional 56,384 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 122,342 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,550,000 after acquiring an additional 971 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE VZ traded down $0.21 on Wednesday, reaching $39.49. The stock had a trading volume of 14,950,591 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,215,721. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.71. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.14 and a 12-month high of $43.42. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $40.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.44. The stock has a market cap of $166.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.41.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 8.44%. The company had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.20 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.74%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on VZ. Barclays lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Redburn Atlantic raised Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.21.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 24,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.80, for a total value of $979,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,436,200.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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).