Bailard Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Bailard Inc. lowered its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 32.1% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 52,722 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 24,969 shares during the quarter. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,317,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 61.2% in the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Waycross Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at about $281,000. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 117.7% during the second quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 765 shares in the last quarter. Maseco LLP purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Finally, Accurate Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 40,689 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,710,000 after purchasing an additional 1,583 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.4%

VZ stock opened at $39.24 on Thursday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $47.35. The business’s 50-day moving average is $40.44 and its 200 day moving average is $41.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market cap of $165.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.39, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.34.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $33.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 12th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.0%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on VZ. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Verizon Communications from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. BNP Paribas Exane lowered Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.25.

Verizon Communications Profile

Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE: VZ) is a major U.S.-based telecommunications company that provides a broad range of communications and information services. Its operations span consumer and business markets, with core offerings that include wireless voice and data services, fixed-line broadband and fiber-optic services, and enterprise networking solutions. Verizon is headquartered in New York City and operates a nationwide wireless network that supports consumer subscribers as well as business and government customers.

The company’s consumer products include mobile phone plans, unlimited data services, and Fios, its branded fiber-optic internet, television and voice service for homes and small businesses.