Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC Grows Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 57.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,011 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the period. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $130,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted its position 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 worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC boosted 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 worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $43.68 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.58 and a 52-week high of $47.35. The company has a 50 day moving average of $43.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.35. The company has a market capitalization of $184.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.37.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.3%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 63.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.53.

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).