Short Interest in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Grows By 34.8%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 148,344,833 shares, an increase of 34.8% from the January 29th total of 110,059,370 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 44,617,715 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.3 days. Approximately 3.5% of the company’s stock are short sold. Approximately 3.5% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 44,617,715 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ traded down $0.10 on Monday, reaching $50.04. 23,719,362 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 34,875,176. The firm has a market cap of $211.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.36. Verizon Communications has a 52 week low of $38.39 and a 52 week high of $50.47.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. Verizon Communications’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.7%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 69.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on VZ. Williams Trading set a $54.00 price target on Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.02.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the director 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.3% during the third quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 335,856 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $14,761,000 after buying an additional 13,787 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 379,174 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $16,665,000 after acquiring an additional 46,699 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 18.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 140,981 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $6,196,000 after acquiring an additional 21,915 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Verizon Communications by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,667,402 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $161,182,000 after acquiring an additional 99,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 378.7% in the 3rd quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 93,732 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,120,000 after purchasing an additional 74,151 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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.