M. Kraus & Co Boosts Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

M. Kraus & Co grew its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 21.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 64,630 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 11,242 shares during the period. Verizon Communications accounts for approximately 0.7% of M. Kraus & Co’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. M. Kraus & Co’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,632,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. MBL Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 57.9% in the 4th quarter. MBL Wealth LLC now owns 20,316 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $827,000 after buying an additional 7,453 shares during the period. Mayport LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Winthrop Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 18.1% in the 4th quarter. Winthrop Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,998 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 1,071 shares during the period. DMC Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. DMC Group LLC now owns 20,076 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $818,000 after buying an additional 1,453 shares during the period. Finally, SRH Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 83.3% in the 4th quarter. SRH Advisors LLC now owns 4,611 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $188,000 after buying an additional 2,096 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the director directly owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. This trade represents a 57.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 218,148 shares of company stock valued at $10,780,356 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Dividend, buyback and restructuring tailwinds support shareholder value: analysts and commentators highlight Verizon’s large dividend yield, a $25B buyback program, CEO-led $9B cost reductions and the Frontier acquisition that boosts fiber reach — factors that underpin the stock’s defensive appeal to income investors. The War Won’t Last Forever: 3 Stocks That Could Lead the Recovery
• Positive Sentiment: Value/income narrative: market coverage groups list VZ among “discount” or baby?boomer favorite stocks because of its >5% yield, low forward P/E and recent operational wins (postpaid adds, modest revenue growth), supporting the case for long?term income buyers. 5 Baby Boomer Stock Favorites Now Trading at a Discount
• Neutral Sentiment: Longer?term growth opportunities in automotive connectivity: research notes Verizon’s 5G, V2X and automaker partnerships as a potential growth avenue, but benefits are gradual and not an immediate stock catalyst. Can Verizon’s Strong Automotive Connectivity Solutions Drive Growth?
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming Q1 earnings and guidance cadence are watch points: analysts expect single?digit earnings growth and management commentary on 5G/fiber monetization and free cash flow will drive near?term sentiment. What to Expect From Verizon Communications’ Q1 2026 Earnings Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Apollo/Yahoo refinancing note is mostly peripheral to Verizon (Yahoo was sold in 2021), so it has limited direct impact on VZ fundamentals. Apollo-backed Yahoo kicks off talks on US$1.6 billion refinancing
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder proposals and governance scrutiny could create proxy friction and distract management: proposals on board structure, climate oversight and ESG?linked pay drew opposition from Verizon but raise investor governance risk ahead of the annual meeting. Verizon Shareholder Push Raises Questions On Governance Climate Oversight And Valuation
• Negative Sentiment: Near?term sector/macro pressure and reported price weakness: coverage noting VZ’s decline despite broader market gains and sector weakness (geopolitical risk, rising oil and rotation away from premium wireless) are pressuring the stock in the short term. Verizon Communications (VZ) Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of several analyst reports. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. 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. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. William Blair raised shares of Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Scotiabank raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.56.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $48.57 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.91. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $204.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.99, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $48.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.54.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $36.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.8%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 69.88%.

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.