Walter Public Investments Inc. Trims Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Posted by Geri Gentry on Aug 23rd, 2026

Verizon Communications logo Walter Public Investments Inc. cut its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Free Report) by 50.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 54,859 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 55,941 shares during the period. Walter Public Investments Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,323,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 490.0% in the fourth quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the period. Robinswood Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Lam Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 173.0% during the 4th quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.68, for a total transaction of $53,548.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 109,866 shares of the company’s stock, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VZ. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Moffett Nathanson dropped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $51.50 to $52.50 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.84.

Get Our Latest Research Report on VZ

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.3%

VZ opened at $49.34 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.39 and a 52 week high of $51.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.29. The firm has a market cap of $205.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.25.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 11.64%.The firm had revenue of $34.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.22 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th were paid a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date 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 73.70%.

Verizon Communications Profile

(Free Report)

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.