Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) CEO Sells $48,928.00 in Stock

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.48, for a total transaction of $48,928.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,966 shares in the company, valued at $4,446,487.68. The trade was a 1.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Kyle Malady also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, October 13th, Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.93, for a total transaction of $47,223.00.
• On Tuesday, October 6th, Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.75, for a total value of $50,325.00.
• On Tuesday, September 29th, Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.40, for a total value of $51,040.00.
• On Tuesday, September 22nd, Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.65, for a total value of $52,415.00.
• On Tuesday, September 8th, Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.98, for a total value of $54,978.00.
• On Tuesday, September 1st, Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.50, for a total value of $55,550.00.
• On Tuesday, August 25th, Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.06, for a total value of $55,066.00.
• On Tuesday, August 18th, Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.68, for a total value of $53,548.00.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $44.59 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market cap of $185.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.61, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.26. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $47.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.65. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.54 and a 12-month high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 19.48%. The business had revenue of $34.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.16 billion. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.22 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 9th will be issued a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.70%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VZ. USS Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 713,156 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $35,790,000 after buying an additional 31,354 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Capital Inc. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 8.6% in the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Capital Inc. now owns 317,284 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $13,434,000 after buying an additional 25,156 shares in the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 127.0% in the 2nd quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 184,170 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $7,798,000 after buying an additional 103,046 shares in the last quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ grew its position in Verizon Communications by 3.1% in the first quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 2,450,129 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $122,996,000 after acquiring an additional 73,159 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Verizon Communications by 30.6% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 5,718,859 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $287,081,000 after acquiring an additional 1,339,580 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. Scotiabank cut their target price on Verizon Communications from $51.50 to $50.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 9th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Moffett Nathanson lowered their price target on Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 20th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.80.

Verizon Communications News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon’s approximately 6.5% dividend yield and $0.7075 quarterly payout remain attractive to income-oriented investors. The company’s dividend is supported by recurring telecom cash flows, although its payout ratio is relatively high. AT&T Froze Its Dividend After a 2022 Cut
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon reports third-quarter earnings on October 26, with analysts expecting roughly $1.27 EPS. Investors will focus on wireless subscriber additions, churn, service revenue, broadband growth and management’s outlook. Strong operating metrics could offset broader competitive concerns. Verizon Q3 2026 Preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi estimates SpaceX’s national wireless service is unlikely to launch before 2029, but reported efforts to secure access to as many as 80,000 U.S. cell sites—and SpaceX’s roughly $8 billion spectrum deal—have raised questions about whether the timetable could move forward. Starlink Is Years Away From Competing With AT&T and Verizon
• Negative Sentiment: SpaceX’s reported negotiations with tower companies imply a potential fourth nationwide wireless competitor. Investors fear Starlink could pressure Verizon’s pricing, customer growth and returns on its network investments; the news also contributed to weakness across major wireless carriers while tower stocks benefited. SpaceX Just Made Cell Towers Cool Again
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank made a minor reduction to its FY2027 EPS forecast, lowering it to $5.25 from $5.26. The small adjustment is not significant by itself, but it reinforces the cautious analyst backdrop ahead of earnings. Verizon analyst estimate
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares for approximately $48,928 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The transaction was only about 1.09% of his holdings, limiting its significance, but repeated planned sales may add modest negative sentiment. SEC insider transaction filing

Verizon Communications Company Profile

Verizon Communications Inc is a telecommunications company that provides wireless communications, broadband, and digital connectivity services. Through its consumer business, Verizon offers mobile voice and data plans, smartphones and other connected devices, home internet, fixed wireless access, and fiber-optic broadband services under the Fios brand.

Verizon also serves businesses, government agencies, and other organizations with wireless connectivity, private networks, internet and data services, managed communications, cloud and security solutions, and Internet of Things services.