Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 16,841 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 11.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 127,268 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 16,841 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,593,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 95.3% during the 3rd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the period. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the third quarter worth $29,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its position in Verizon Communications by 739.5% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Silicon Valley Capital Partners lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 52.4% in the second quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 782 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. Evercore raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has 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.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.28.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $50.41 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.62. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.39 and a 52-week high of $51.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.60 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.30.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 12.43%.The firm had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.7075 per share. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.15%.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Scotiabank upgraded Verizon from “sector perform” to “sector outperform” and raised its price target to $54.50, signaling analyst confidence and providing upside near-term pressure support. Scotiabank upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street note: recent analyst attention and upgrades (cited by 247WallStreet) put Verizon back on analysts’ radars, which can attract flows from institutional investors and help the stock recover. Verizon and ITT Are on Analysts’ Radar
• Neutral Sentiment: Promotion activity tied to the Samsung Galaxy S26 rollout has increased industry-wide handset promotions; this raises competition for new activations and trade-in incentives — a potential margin/headline risk for carriers but not an immediate earnings shock. Samsung Galaxy S26 promotion wars
• Neutral Sentiment: Morning analyst research roundups included Verizon among many names being re-rated; this increases visibility but results will depend on follow-through from funds and whether upgrades translate into buying. Monday’s Top Wall Street Analyst Research Calls
• Negative Sentiment: Headline: Zacks flagged a decline in VZ versus a stronger market — reflecting that broader market rotation and negative macro headlines are pressuring the share price despite company fundamentals. Verizon stock sinks as market gains
• Negative Sentiment: Insider/insider-connected selling reported (Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse unloaded shares) can create short-term headline pressure and raises governance/flow questions for some investors. Shares unloaded — Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,976,739.60. This represents a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $428,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,189,100. This trade represents a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356. Company insiders own 0.10% 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.