Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Purchased by International Private Wealth Advisors LLC

International Private Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,141 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 365 shares during the period. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $446,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Austin Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 3.0% during the third quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,450 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $343,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the period. Western Financial Corp CA increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Western Financial Corp CA now owns 17,491 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $786,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. First Personal Financial Services raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. First Personal Financial Services now owns 91,092 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,091,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Encompass Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.0% in the third quarter. Encompass Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 12,505 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $562,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $39.94 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company has a market cap of $168.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.45. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $40.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.56. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share 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 quarter last year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th were issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.46%.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total value of $453,154.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $596,439.20. This trade represents a 43.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,085 shares of company stock valued at $1,582,995. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. KeyCorp cut shares of Verizon Communications from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.08.

Verizon Communications Company 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).