Claris Advisors LLC MO Takes $221,000 Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Claris Advisors LLC MO acquired a new position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,873 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the third quarter worth approximately $66,000. Redmond Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Redmond Asset Management LLC now owns 32,163 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,042,000 after purchasing an additional 2,125 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. raised its position in Verizon Communications by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 100,482 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $3,257,000 after purchasing an additional 4,194 shares during the period. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.6% in the third quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 2,045,100 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $66,282,000 after purchasing an additional 32,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Total Clarity Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 21.1% in the third quarter. Total Clarity Wealth Management Inc. now owns 53,589 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,737,000 after purchasing an additional 9,323 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of Verizon Communications stock traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $38.89. The company had a trading volume of 13,195,563 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,003,748. The company has a 50 day moving average of $40.32 and a 200 day moving average of $38.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $163.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.42. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $30.14 and a 52-week high of $43.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.71.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.41% and a net margin of 8.44%. The firm had revenue of $33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were issued a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 99.25%.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 24,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.80, for a total value of $979,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,436,200.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on VZ shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.21.

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).