NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Increases Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 813,067 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 56,382 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises approximately 1.0% of NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $32,515,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 114.6% during the fourth quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $43.50 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $43.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.16. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.59 and a 52 week high of $47.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company has a market cap of $183.41 billion, a PE ratio of 10.51, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.39.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.52%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.88, for a total value of $329,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 19,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $834,071.04. This trade represents a 28.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 21,500 shares of company stock valued at $938,400 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on VZ. Wolfe Research cut shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $45.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Tigress Financial upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Nine 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, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.41.

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).