Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) is Credit Capital Investments LLC’s 3rd Largest Position

Credit Capital Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 170,950 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,950 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises approximately 8.9% of Credit Capital Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Credit Capital Investments LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $6,836,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. First Financial Bankshares Inc boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. First Financial Bankshares Inc now owns 9,068 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth about $1,745,000. Vinva Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 210,217 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $8,325,000 after purchasing an additional 16,178 shares during the period. Bestgate Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at about $399,000. Finally, Stokes Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 27.3% during the 4th quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 31,625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,265,000 after buying an additional 6,787 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen upgraded Verizon Communications to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.11.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total transaction of $810,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 45,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,851,664.50. The trade was a 30.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Vandana Venkatesh sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.79, for a total value of $437,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,459 shares in the company, valued at $633,159.61. This trade represents a 40.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 49,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,895. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:VZ opened at $44.22 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.59 and a 12-month high of $47.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $186.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.68, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $41.97.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 period in the prior year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS 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 paid a $0.6775 dividend. This represents a $2.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.46%.

Verizon Communications Company 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).