Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) CEO Sells $53,548.00 in Stock

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.68, for a total value of $53,548.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 109,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,348,276.88. This represents a 0.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of VZ opened at $49.34 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $45.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.29. The stock has a market cap of $205.00 billion, a PE ratio of 12.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.25. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.39 and a 12 month high of $51.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.57.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $34.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.16 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 11.64%.The company’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th were issued a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.70%.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Robinswood Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Gill Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 74.6% in the second quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC now owns 620 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 490.0% in the fourth quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EQ Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on VZ. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.84.

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.