Investment Research Partners LLC Purchases New Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Investment Research Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 25,212 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $1,014,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 373,904,749 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $16,433,114,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117,733 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 215,490,064 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,470,788,000 after purchasing an additional 7,276,809 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at about $2,504,150,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,265,695 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,989,427,000 after buying an additional 557,576 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 4.5% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 28,188,066 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,238,866,000 after buying an additional 1,203,445 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Scotiabank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Barclays initiated coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.03.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ opened at $49.50 on Thursday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.67. 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 company’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $208.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.31.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.7%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction of $429,905.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,976,739.60. This represents a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total value of $9,922,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. This represents a 57.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock valued at $10,780,356 over the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: J.P. Morgan says near-term earnings headwinds are being offset by Verizon’s strategic fiber expansion, which supports medium-term growth prospects and helps justify a Hold rating. This highlights durable capital allocation toward higher-margin fiber that could underpin stable cash flow. Verizon Communications: Near-Term Earnings Headwinds Offset by Strategic Fiber Expansion, Justifying a Hold Rating
• Neutral Sentiment: New federal legislation (H.R.7752, the Kelsey Smith Act) would tighten requirements for emergency disclosure of device location data. Verizon may need process and systems updates; financial impact is unclear and likely limited to compliance costs unless the law changes operator liability or timelines materially. New Bill: Representative Derek Schmidt introduces H.R. 7752: Kelsey Smith Act
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector Q4 benchmarking pieces review Verizon’s recent results in context of wireless/cable peers. Useful for investors comparing execution and margins, but the writeup is largely descriptive rather than introducing new catalysts. Consumer Discretionary – Wireless, Cable and Satellite Stocks Q4 Results: Benchmarking Verizon (NYSE:VZ)
• Negative Sentiment: KeyBanc criticized Verizon’s new reporting structure (starting in Q1) as investor-unfriendly and said the disclosures reduce modeling transparency—this can increase uncertainty among quant and income investors who rely on detailed segment metrics. Reduced visibility often weighs on multiples for dividend-oriented stocks. KeyBanc Flags Verizon’s (VZ) New Reporting Structure as Investor-Unfriendly
• Negative Sentiment: Sen. Elizabeth Warren has questioned Verizon over recent layoffs and prior tax benefits, drawing political and reputational scrutiny that could bring regulatory or PR risk. That attention can pressure the stock if it prompts investigations or forces changes to workforce/cost plans. Verizon Faces Warren Scrutiny On Layoffs As Valuation Gap Draws Focus
• Negative Sentiment: A market note flagged Verizon’s share decline (larger than the market) in the latest session, reflecting investor reaction to the combined signals above (mixed analyst views, disclosure changes, and political scrutiny). Short-term sentiment appears negative as traders reprice uncertainty. Verizon Communications (VZ) Declines More Than Market: Some Information for Investors

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.