Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ is Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd’s 2nd Largest Position

Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 6.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 848,780 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 48,090 shares during the period. Verizon Communications makes up about 6.3% of Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $37,304,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at about $2,504,150,000. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 51.1% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,512,228 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $637,812,000 after purchasing an additional 4,905,101 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 372,787,016 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $16,130,494,000 after purchasing an additional 4,615,075 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 208,213,255 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,009,388,000 after purchasing an additional 4,205,449 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 21.5% during the 2nd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 21,159,040 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $915,552,000 after purchasing an additional 3,743,892 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.4%

NYSE VZ traded up $0.69 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $51.32. 5,967,888 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 32,706,479. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.39 and a 1-year high of $51.67. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company has a market cap of $216.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.31.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business 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 $0.7075 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on VZ shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Evercore increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.03.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the business’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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. The trade was a 17.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total transaction of $9,922,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. This trade represents a 57.96% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356 in the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

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.