USS Investment Management Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Free Report) by 4.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 713,156 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 31,354 shares during the quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $35,790,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 490.0% during the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, EQ Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
VZ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Scotiabank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Dbs Bank downgraded Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.59.
Verizon Communications Trading Down 3.9%
NYSE VZ opened at $42.37 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.64. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.68. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $46.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $45.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $176.92 billion, a PE ratio of 10.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.24.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The firm had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.
Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.7%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 69.02%.
More Verizon Communications News
Here are the key news stories impacting Verizon Communications this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Verizon’s BT Group joint venture could improve its international enterprise reach and create a more scalable global connectivity platform. Reuters: BT, Verizon announce joint venture for international enterprise units
- Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to debate whether the Dow removal is a temporary index-rebalancing event or a sign of weaker long-term sentiment toward Verizon. Motley Fool: Verizon Gets Booted from the Dow Jones Industrial Average
- Negative Sentiment: Verizon was removed from the Dow Jones Industrial Average, prompting selling pressure from index funds and signaling a lower profile among blue-chip stocks. Yahoo Finance: Why Verizon Shares Are Trading Lower Today
- Negative Sentiment: The BT joint venture comes with added transformation costs, and Verizon disclosed it could take up to an $800 million hit tied to the deal. Stocktwits: Verizon Flags Up To $800M BT Group JV Hit
- Negative Sentiment: Investor worries are also rising that SpaceX could challenge legacy wireless carriers, adding competitive pressure to Verizon’s long-term growth outlook. Barrons: SpaceX Might Bring Mobile Phone to Market
Verizon Communications Profile
Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE: VZ) is a major U.S.-based telecommunications company that provides a broad range of communications and information services. Its operations span consumer and business markets, with core offerings that include wireless voice and data services, fixed-line broadband and fiber-optic services, and enterprise networking solutions. Verizon is headquartered in New York City and operates a nationwide wireless network that supports consumer subscribers as well as business and government customers.
The company’s consumer products include mobile phone plans, unlimited data services, and Fios, its branded fiber-optic internet, television and voice service for homes and small businesses.
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