Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC Acquires 3,532 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,751 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,532 shares during the quarter. Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,349,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Fred Alger Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.9% during the third quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 124,094 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $5,573,000 after acquiring an additional 3,520 shares in the last quarter. Encompass More Asset Management acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at $251,000. Tradition Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.9% during the third quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 28,698 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,289,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 6.8% in the third quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 9,123 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $410,000 after buying an additional 580 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.0% during the third quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 55,480 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,492,000 after buying an additional 554 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total value of $810,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 45,675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,851,664.50. This represents a 30.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total transaction of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $633,159.61. The trade was a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE VZ opened at $44.96 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $189.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company’s 50 day moving average is $42.11 and its 200-day moving average is $42.07. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.59 and a 12-month high of $47.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.01). Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 19.80%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.6775 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.03%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 target price on the stock. DZ Bank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com cut Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $45.00 target price (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.71.

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).