Sowa Financial Group Inc. Trims Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Sowa Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 7.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,894 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 923 shares during the period. Verizon Communications comprises about 0.3% of Sowa Financial Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Sowa Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $436,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 30,801 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,232,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the period. Cove Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 40.6% in the fourth quarter. Cove Private Wealth LLC now owns 9,396 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $376,000 after purchasing an additional 2,711 shares in the last quarter. Baugh & Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Baugh & Associates LLC now owns 128,066 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,939,000 after buying an additional 5,651 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 33.5% during the fourth quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 15,987 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $612,000 after acquiring an additional 4,014 shares during the last quarter. Finally, True Link Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $218,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $38.86 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $41.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $163.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.75, a PEG ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.58 and a 52 week high of $45.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $33.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 7.30% and a return on equity of 20.05%. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.22 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.6 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a dividend of $0.6775 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.97%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 116.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com downgraded Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup increased their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.54.

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).