40,305 Shares in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Bought by Berry Wealth Group LP

Berry Wealth Group LP acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 40,305 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $1,520,000. Verizon Communications comprises 1.4% of Berry Wealth Group LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 98,027,542 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $3,151,714,000 after buying an additional 4,527,387 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 28,400,326 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $920,455,000 after purchasing an additional 4,134,150 shares during the period. Comerica Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth $133,491,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 3,782.4% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,974,813 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $149,850,000 after buying an additional 3,872,434 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 104.0% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 5,302,051 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $171,839,000 after buying an additional 2,703,197 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Verizon Communications stock traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $39.50. 7,162,081 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 19,994,480. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $30.14 and a 1 year high of $43.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $166.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $40.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.74.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.23 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 20.41%. Verizon Communications’s quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.20 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.73%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 99.25%.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 24,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.80, for a total value of $979,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,436,200.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on VZ. Wolfe Research raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $46.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Citigroup increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $37.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $33.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.21.

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).