Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Free Report) by 64.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,644,554 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 642,350 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $69,630,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. USS Investment Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 713,156 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $35,790,000 after acquiring an additional 31,354 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 41.0% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 2,197,366 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $89,499,000 after acquiring an additional 639,380 shares during the period. Clarity Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 697.0% during the fourth quarter. Clarity Financial LLC now owns 471,127 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $19,189,000 after purchasing an additional 412,018 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 15.3% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,382,975 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $97,059,000 after purchasing an additional 316,854 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keudell Morrison Wealth Management acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $2,171,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.
Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications
In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.68, for a total transaction of $53,548.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 109,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,348,276.88. This represents a 0.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Get Our Latest Report on Verizon Communications
Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.5%
VZ opened at $49.28 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $45.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $204.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.25. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.60.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 19.48%. The business had revenue of $34.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.22 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.
Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were issued a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.7%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.70%.
Key Headlines Impacting Verizon Communications
Here are the key news stories impacting Verizon Communications this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Verizon’s fiber strategy is receiving attention following its Frontier acquisition. Greater fiber scale could support broadband growth, improve network economics and strengthen the company’s competitive position. Verizon Communications Leans Into Fiber After the Frontier Close
- Positive Sentiment: Income-focused coverage continues to highlight Verizon’s roughly 6% dividend yield and 20 consecutive years of dividend increases. Analysts note that the payout appears secure, although limited growth remains a consideration for investors. Verizon’s Dividend Looks Secure But Investors Should Keep an Eye on Growth
- Positive Sentiment: A post-earnings review presents Verizon as a potential buy-or-hold candidate for income investors. The company recently exceeded quarterly EPS expectations and maintains fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of approximately $4.99 to $5.04. Verizon Buy, Sell, or Hold Post Q2 Earnings?
- Neutral Sentiment: CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The small transaction reduces his holdings by less than 1% and is unlikely to materially change the investment outlook.
- Neutral Sentiment: Articles criticizing Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF’s methodology and high-yield “dividend traps” concern other securities and do not directly alter Verizon’s fundamentals.
- Negative Sentiment: The U.S. Supreme Court rejected Verizon’s final appeal of a $47 million FCC fine tied to customer location-data practices. The ruling ends the recovery effort and reinforces regulatory and privacy-compliance risks for the telecom operator. Supreme Court Rejects Verizon Bid to Recover $47M FCC Fine
About Verizon Communications
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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