Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Sold by Fortis Capital Advisors LLC

Fortis Capital Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,498 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 362 shares during the period. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $411,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $29,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Arete Research raised Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.53.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

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 business’s 50-day moving average price is $43.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.35. The firm has a market cap of $184.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.37.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 13.28%.The firm had revenue of $34.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.15 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.3%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Verizon Communications’s dividend 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).