Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Down 2.8% – Time to Sell?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shares traded down 2.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $44.60 and last traded at $44.37. 10,468,052 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 47% from the average session volume of 19,582,704 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.62.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on VZ shares. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Argus raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com lowered Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.82.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 5.5 %

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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.41, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the previous year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 65.46%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 8,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.88, for a total value of $319,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $262,809.20. The trade was a 54.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock worth $2,020,895. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 69.6% in the fourth quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the fourth quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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).