Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Down 1.4% – Time to Sell?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shares were down 1.4% during trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $43.43 and last traded at $44.5860. 51,051,723 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 87% from the average session volume of 27,309,467 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.20.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon’s approximately 6.5% dividend yield and $0.7075 quarterly payout remain attractive to income-oriented investors. The company’s dividend is supported by recurring telecom cash flows, although its payout ratio is relatively high. AT&T Froze Its Dividend After a 2022 Cut
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon reports third-quarter earnings on October 26, with analysts expecting roughly $1.27 EPS. Investors will focus on wireless subscriber additions, churn, service revenue, broadband growth and management’s outlook. Strong operating metrics could offset broader competitive concerns. Verizon Q3 2026 Preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi estimates SpaceX’s national wireless service is unlikely to launch before 2029, but reported efforts to secure access to as many as 80,000 U.S. cell sites—and SpaceX’s roughly $8 billion spectrum deal—have raised questions about whether the timetable could move forward. Starlink Is Years Away From Competing With AT&T and Verizon
• Negative Sentiment: SpaceX’s reported negotiations with tower companies imply a potential fourth nationwide wireless competitor. Investors fear Starlink could pressure Verizon’s pricing, customer growth and returns on its network investments; the news also contributed to weakness across major wireless carriers while tower stocks benefited. SpaceX Just Made Cell Towers Cool Again
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank made a minor reduction to its FY2027 EPS forecast, lowering it to $5.25 from $5.26. The small adjustment is not significant by itself, but it reinforces the cautious analyst backdrop ahead of earnings. Verizon analyst estimate
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares for approximately $48,928 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The transaction was only about 1.09% of his holdings, limiting its significance, but repeated planned sales may add modest negative sentiment. SEC insider transaction filing

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. TD Cowen lifted their price target on 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 reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane dropped their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.80.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 1.4%

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $47.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $46.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $185.24 billion, a PE ratio of 11.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 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, November 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.3%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.70%.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.48, for a total value of $48,928.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,446,487.68. The trade was a 1.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,900 shares of company stock worth $469,073. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC now owns 3,568 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $151,000 after buying an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. RKL Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. RKL Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,338 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $268,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Manchester Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Manchester Financial Inc. now owns 34,924 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,479,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 32.7% in the first quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 888 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, FAS Wealth Partners Inc. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the first quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 18,421 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $925,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

About Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications Inc is a telecommunications company that provides wireless communications, broadband, and digital connectivity services. Through its consumer business, Verizon offers mobile voice and data plans, smartphones and other connected devices, home internet, fixed wireless access, and fiber-optic broadband services under the Fios brand.

Verizon also serves businesses, government agencies, and other organizations with wireless connectivity, private networks, internet and data services, managed communications, cloud and security solutions, and Internet of Things services.