Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares Sold by C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors

C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors reduced its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 61.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,433 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 3,815 shares during the quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors’ holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $97,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Austin Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.0% in the third quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,450 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.4% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $343,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the period. First Personal Financial Services lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. First Personal Financial Services now owns 91,092 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,091,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Encompass Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Encompass Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 12,505 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $562,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, First Dallas Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. now owns 31,728 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,425,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $42.77 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $180.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.63. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.58 and a fifty-two week high of $45.36. The company’s 50-day moving average is $39.91 and its 200 day moving average is $41.61.

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

Verizon Communications Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.34%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 65.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 11,085 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.88, for a total value of $453,154.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $596,439.20. The trade was a 43.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,085 shares of company stock valued at $1,582,995. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on VZ. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. DZ Bank raised Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wolfe Research upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.08.

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).