Ashton Thomas Securities LLC Has $1.25 Million Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 14.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,856 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,577 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,249,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted 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 worth $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in 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 worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VZ. Bank of America increased 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Arete Research raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.53.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $43.43 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $43.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $183.12 billion, a PE ratio of 10.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $47.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $33.47 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.4%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 63.17%.

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).