Private Advisor Group LLC Sells 14,377 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Private Advisor Group LLC trimmed its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 547,273 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 14,377 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $27,473,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,759,000 after buying an additional 16,704 shares in the last quarter. United Bank boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 11.5% during the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 7,843 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 806 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 312.0% during the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 23,639 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,023,000 after acquiring an additional 17,901 shares in the last quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 17.2% in the second quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 41,121 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,779,000 after acquiring an additional 6,034 shares during the period. Finally, Vivaldi Capital Management LP increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 5.2% in the second quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 8,993 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $389,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to frame Verizon as an attractive value stock, with Zacks citing favorable style-score characteristics that may appeal to value-focused investors. Here’s Why Verizon Communications (VZ) is a Strong Value Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon’s dividend profile is still a key support for the shares, with comparisons to AT&T emphasizing Verizon’s long record of dividend increases and its appeal to income investors. Better High-Yield Dividend Stock: Verizon or AT&T?
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon and BT Group announced a $4 billion international enterprise joint venture, which could expand Verizon’s global business services reach and improve growth prospects. Is Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) Stock Positioned for Growth After $4B International Enterprise Partnership?
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon is getting more trading attention from retail investors, which may reflect renewed interest but does not by itself change the company’s fundamentals. Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street expects Verizon’s upcoming quarterly earnings to show modest profit growth, making the next report an important catalyst but not a clear surprise yet. What to Expect From Verizon Communications’ Next Quarterly Earnings Report
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage about Starlink’s push into mobile service raises longer-term competitive pressure on Verizon and other wireless carriers, even though major infrastructure hurdles remain. Starlink Dominates Internet From Space. Can It Disrupt AT&T and Verizon on the Ground?

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Freedom Capital upgraded Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Scotiabank raised Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of VZ stock opened at $42.57 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $51.68. The company has a market capitalization of $177.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.26. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $46.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

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

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 69.02%.

Verizon Communications 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.