Investors Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ)

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Investors purchased 65,886 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 45% compared to the typical volume of 45,303 call options.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 3.5 %

Verizon Communications stock opened at $41.43 on Thursday. Verizon Communications has a one year low of $30.14 and a one year high of $43.42. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $40.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.52. The company has a market capitalization of $174.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.46, a PEG ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.15 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 20.10% and a net margin of 8.38%. The business had revenue of $32.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.21 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.50 to $46.50 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.78.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of VZ. Taylor Hoffman Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 32.9% in the fourth quarter. Taylor Hoffman Wealth Management now owns 9,353 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $353,000 after acquiring an additional 2,314 shares during the period. Leo Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at $3,346,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 15.4% in the 2nd quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 283,160 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $11,678,000 after purchasing an additional 37,732 shares during the last quarter. Windle Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Windle Wealth LLC now owns 164,242 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $6,192,000 after purchasing an additional 1,270 shares during the period. Finally, Mosley Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at about $433,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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).