Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Holdings Lifted by TD Waterhouse Canada Inc.

TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 64.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 816,864 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 319,553 shares during the quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $35,661,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in VZ. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% during 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 in the last quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 15,320 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $695,000 after buying an additional 733 shares during the period. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 11.3% during the 1st quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 15,500 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $703,000 after buying an additional 1,572 shares in the last quarter. Ignite Planners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 38,703 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,676,000 after acquiring an additional 3,492 shares during the period. Finally, Nelson Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.9% in the first quarter. Nelson Capital Management LLC now owns 60,658 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,751,000 after acquiring an additional 545 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $41.47 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $37.58 and a one year high of $47.35. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $41.44 and a 200-day moving average of $42.58. The company has a market capitalization of $174.85 billion, a PE ratio of 8.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $33.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 14.43%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th were paid a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.7%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on VZ shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Verizon Communications from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.50 to $51.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their target price on Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.41.

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).