Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lowered its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.2% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 35,319,757 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 1,531,435 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises approximately 0.4% of Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,602,023,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VZ. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at $26,000. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the fourth quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.50 to $49.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Arete Research raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ opened at $43.52 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.58 and a 1 year high of $47.35. The company has a market cap of $183.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $42.67 and a 200-day moving average of $42.91.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%. The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.15 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.17%.

Verizon Communications 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).