Crumly & Associates Inc. Makes New Investment in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Crumly & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 8,020 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $347,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Sargent Investment Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 7,125 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $323,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Crescent Sterling Ltd. now owns 30,906 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,402,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 80,178 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $3,637,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the 1st quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the 1st 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. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $43.99 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $185.48 billion, a PE ratio of 10.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.36. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $43.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.64. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.58 and a 1 year high of $47.35.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $0.69 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.3%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $49.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.65.

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).