Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stock Holdings Lessened by Aldebaran Financial Inc.

Aldebaran Financial Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 17.9% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 14,444 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 3,150 shares during the quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $596,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VZ. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 50.4% in the first quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 883 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on VZ shares. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Raymond James boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.09.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $44.91 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $189.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.76, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a 50-day moving average of $41.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $40.99. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.14 and a fifty-two week high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.21 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a $0.678 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.04%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.12%.

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).