Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Sold by Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC trimmed its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 4.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 83,595 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 4,057 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,617,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 61.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,759,000 after purchasing an additional 16,704 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 4.8% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 27,726 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,258,000 after purchasing an additional 1,265 shares during the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 8.8% in the first quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 13,573 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $616,000 after purchasing an additional 1,099 shares during the last quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 23.2% in the first quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,357 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $787,000 after purchasing an additional 3,274 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 0.9% in the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 841,375 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $38,165,000 after purchasing an additional 7,793 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. BNP Paribas Exane lowered Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $50.50 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.41.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $39.25 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $47.35. The business has a 50-day moving average of $42.73 and a 200-day moving average of $42.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $165.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.15, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.37.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.34%.

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).