Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Free Report) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 537,659 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 12,113 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $21,899,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 95.3% in the 3rd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Trending Headlines about Verizon Communications
Here are the key news stories impacting Verizon Communications this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q1 results showed an EPS beat and management described a turnaround with stronger profitability and postpaid phone subscriber gains — the core catalyst for the rally. Verizon CEO Claims Turnaround Is Officially Underway
- Positive Sentiment: Promotional push delivered ~55K new wireless subscribers and Verizon raised FY?26 profit guidance, directly improving near?term revenue and margin outlook. Verizon’s promos lead to 55K new wireless subscribers; raises FY26 profit guidance
- Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on VZ to $52 (maintaining a Neutral rating), signaling modest upside from current levels and lending analyst support to the move higher. Benzinga
- Positive Sentiment: Consumer perks — bundled/discounted streaming offers — are likely helping acquisition and retention trends, supporting ARPU and churn improvements. Verizon’s Streaming Deals Let You Watch Netflix, Disney Plus and More, for Less
- Neutral Sentiment: Cydcor, a Verizon channel partner, won Verizon’s 2025 ACD Wireless Agent of the Year award — a positive PR/partner win but limited direct impact on VZ fundamentals. Cydcor Earns Verizon’s 2025 ACD Wireless Agent of the Year Award
- Neutral Sentiment: Small analyst tweak: Erste Group trimmed FY?2027 EPS slightly (from $5.28 to $5.26) but keeps a Strong?Buy — little near?term impact given the tiny change. MarketBeat / Erste Group note
- Neutral Sentiment: Several valuation and analyst-opinion pieces revisit VZ after the Q1 surprise; useful for longer?term positioning but not immediate catalysts. A Look At Verizon (VZ) Valuation After Strong Q1 Earnings And Subscriber Turnaround
- Negative Sentiment: Analysts and commentators warn that rising total debt after the Frontier acquisition could pressure income investors and increase financial risk — this is the main structural downside investors cite. The Ticking Time Bomb That Could Force Income Investors to Sell Verizon Stock
- Negative Sentiment: Competitor OXIO hired a former Verizon executive as CCO — a small talent/competitive signal that could matter in niche TaaS segments but is unlikely to shift overall VZ fundamentals. OXIO Appoints Former Verizon Executive Jeremy Bolton as Chief Commercial Officer
Insider Buying and Selling
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. William Blair upgraded Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Dbs Bank downgraded Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.59.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on VZ
Verizon Communications Trading Up 3.0%
Verizon Communications stock opened at $48.01 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $200.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.71, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.29. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $48.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $44.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.64.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The business had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.19 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
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.
See Also
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding VZ? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Verizon Communications Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Verizon Communications and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
