Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Acquired by World Investment Advisors

World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 23.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 466,396 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 89,826 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors’ holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $18,996,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL raised its position in Verizon Communications by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 2,765 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 35,023 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,426,000 after buying an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,305 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the period. Triton Wealth Management PLLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Triton Wealth Management PLLC now owns 9,257 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $377,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the period. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 9,788 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $399,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the subject of several analyst reports. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Williams Trading set a $54.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.56.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $49.46 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.39 and a 52 week high of $51.68. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $48.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $208.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The business had revenue of $36.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. The company’s revenue 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. Research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.7%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.15%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $428,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at $2,189,100. This represents a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total value of $9,922,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 218,148 shares of company stock valued at $10,780,356 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.