Orca Investment Management LLC Sells 23,169 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

by · The Cerbat Gem

Orca Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Free Report) by 52.6% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 20,889 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 23,169 shares during the quarter. Orca Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $918,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 61.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,759,000 after buying an additional 16,704 shares in the last quarter. Waycross Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth about $281,000. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 117.7% during the 2nd quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,415 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 765 shares during the last quarter. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at $66,000. Finally, Accurate Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.0% during the second quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 40,689 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,710,000 after acquiring an additional 1,583 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.4%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $39.24 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $165.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.39, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.34. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.39 and a twelve month high of $47.35. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $33.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 14.43%.Verizon Communications’s revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 12th will be given a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 12th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings cut Verizon Communications from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.25.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications Profile

(Free Report)

Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE: VZ) is a major U.S.-based telecommunications company that provides a broad range of communications and information services. Its operations span consumer and business markets, with core offerings that include wireless voice and data services, fixed-line broadband and fiber-optic services, and enterprise networking solutions. Verizon is headquartered in New York City and operates a nationwide wireless network that supports consumer subscribers as well as business and government customers.

The company’s consumer products include mobile phone plans, unlimited data services, and Fios, its branded fiber-optic internet, television and voice service for homes and small businesses.

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