Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Up 1.6% - Time to Buy?

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) shares rose 1.6% to $36.90, with trading volume down 84% from average levels. Analysts have recently upgraded their price targets, with Bank of America and Citigroup giving "neutral" and "buy" ratings, respectively. The company reported a quarterly EPS of $1.15, meeting expectations, and announced a dividend increase to $0.678, yielding 6.19%. Hedge funds have increased their stakes, with 62.06% of shares held by institutional investors. The stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target of $38.26.

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) rose 1.6% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $43.95 and last traded at $43.90. Approximately 3,031,003 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 18,465,588 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.19.

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VZ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $46.26.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on VZ

Verizon Communications Price Performance

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The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company's 50 day moving average price is $42.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.23. The company has a market cap of $184.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.38, a PEG ratio of 4.02 and a beta of 0.42.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.38% and a return on equity of 20.10%. The firm had revenue of $32.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.21 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

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The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a $0.678 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.19%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 101.12%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at about $250,312,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 112.6% during the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 6,574,910 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $273,507,000 after buying an additional 3,481,936 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 18.6% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 13,016,271 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $536,791,000 after buying an additional 2,040,247 shares in the last quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 37.9% during the second quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 6,973,838 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $287,601,000 after buying an additional 1,916,951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 153.8% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,806,221 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $115,729,000 after buying an additional 1,700,619 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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).

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