Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Purchased by Sanctuary Advisors LLC

Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 12.0% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 992,459 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 106,325 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $49,821,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $15,453,058,000 after buying an additional 5,497,598 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 222,951,399 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $9,080,810,000 after buying an additional 7,461,335 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Verizon Communications by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 116,570,816 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,747,930,000 after acquiring an additional 5,851,715 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 102,632,509 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,168,080,000 after acquiring an additional 867,694 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,357,158,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications News Summary

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

• Negative Sentiment: Verizon is reportedly planning another round of layoffs this Thursday as management targets $5 billion in operational budget cuts, raising concerns about execution and the need for cost reductions to support earnings. Verizon Plans New Round Of Layoffs
• Negative Sentiment: BNP Paribas Exane cut its price target on Verizon to $44 from $46 and reiterated a neutral stance, suggesting limited near-term re-rating potential for the stock. BNP Paribas Exane lowers Verizon PT
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon has also been caught up in broader telecom sector worries tied to SpaceX/Starlink competition, which is pressuring sentiment across the group rather than reflecting a company-specific change in fundamentals.
• Positive Sentiment: Offsetting some of the pessimism, Verizon recently expanded into BMW connected cars and launched the Gizmo Watch 4, showing continued product and partnership activity in higher-growth connected services. Verizon Expands Into BMW Connected Cars And Launches Gizmo Watch 4

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. Barclays decreased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Freedom Capital raised Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Dbs Bank lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.28.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:VZ opened at $42.44 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.39 and a 1 year high of $51.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $45.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $177.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.35, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.26.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The company had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.02%.

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.