Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Position Increased by New Hampshire Trust

New Hampshire Trust raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.3% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 16,919 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 697 shares during the quarter. New Hampshire Trust’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cabot Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cabot Wealth Management Inc. now owns 226,872 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $9,817,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares during the period. MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $536,000. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 41.6% in the 2nd quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 124,364 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $5,381,000 after purchasing an additional 36,548 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 50,074 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,167,000 after purchasing an additional 1,759 shares during the period. Finally, Brian Low Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter valued at $204,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of 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 lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. 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 research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, 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 research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.41.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.1%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $38.83 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $163.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.37. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $47.35.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.1%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 64.34%.

Verizon Communications Company 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).