Mufg Securities Americas Inc. Grows Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Mufg Securities Americas Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 113,699 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,260 shares during the quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,997,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. TruNorth Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 95.3% during the third quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 739.5% in the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Silicon Valley Capital Partners lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 52.4% in the second quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 782 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Richardson Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the third quarter valued at $35,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Verizon Communications stock opened at $49.63 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.18. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.39 and a 12 month high of $50.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $209.33 billion, a PE ratio of 12.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.33.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. Verizon Communications’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.7075 per share. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.88%.

Key Stories Impacting Verizon Communications

Here are the key news stories impacting Verizon Communications this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Daiwa upgraded VZ to Buy and raised its price target to $58 (from $48), citing clear momentum from Verizon’s Q4 results and subscriber growth; that lift in analyst sentiment supports upside for the shares. Daiwa Upgrades Verizon (VZ) as Subscriber Growth Signals Strong Momentum
• Positive Sentiment: Technical indicator: VZ recently cleared a “golden cross” (50?day SMA above 200?day SMA), which often attracts momentum and technical traders and can increase buying interest. Verizon Communications (VZ) Now Trades Above Golden Cross: Time to Buy?
• Positive Sentiment: Price action: the stock reached a 52?week high (~$50.25 in recent headlines), reinforcing the bullish narrative and likely drawing fresh attention from momentum and dividend-seeking investors. Verizon Communications stock hits 52-week high at 50.25 USD
• Neutral Sentiment: Debt issuance: Verizon completed a sale of €2.25 billion of junior subordinated notes (and related sterling issuance) — this raises liquidity but also adds subordinated debt; impact depends on use of proceeds and investor view on leverage. Verizon Issues Euro and Sterling Junior Subordinated Notes
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend/defensive demand: VZ continues to appear on lists of attractive dividend or low?volatility names, which supports interest from income investors but is unlikely to produce large near?term price moves by itself. My 5 Favorite Dividend Stocks to Buy Right Now
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/headwinds: broader market weakness tied to tariff news and geopolitical headlines is pressuring indexes; such market-wide pullbacks can cap gains in telecom stocks despite company?specific positives. Stock Market Today: Dow Dives As EU Makes Trump Tariff Move; Novo Plunges On This (Live Coverage)

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on VZ. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Evercore raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.02.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 44,045 shares in the company, valued at $1,976,739.60. This trade represents a 17.86% 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. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.