Callan Capital LLC Increases Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Callan Capital LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 18.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,676 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,180 shares during the quarter. Callan Capital LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $307,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 58.0% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 1,756,452 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $78,975,000 after purchasing an additional 644,761 shares in the last quarter. Alpha Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth $224,000. Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 5,174,541 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $232,389,000 after purchasing an additional 39,403 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 22,340 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $958,000 after purchasing an additional 3,370 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heritage Oak Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth $898,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $42.77 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $180.05 billion, a PE ratio of 10.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.34%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.46%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total value of $810,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 45,675 shares in the company, valued at $1,851,664.50. The trade was a 30.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 39,085 shares of company stock worth $1,582,995 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price target for the company. Finally, Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Ten 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.08.

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).