Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Bought by Waverly Advisors LLC

Waverly Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 546,515 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 19,835 shares during the quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $27,435,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 490.0% during the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at $28,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 173.0% during the fourth quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quattro Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of VZ opened at $46.34 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68. The company has a market capitalization of $193.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.26. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.64.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $34.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.16 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.22 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.02%.

Verizon Communications News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon beat Q2 adjusted EPS estimates at $1.30 versus $1.27 expected, helped by record EBITDA margins and stronger cash generation. Verizon earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its full-year 2026 guidance for adjusted EPS, mobility and broadband service revenue, and free cash flow, signaling management confidence in the outlook. Reuters guidance article
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon posted better-than-expected subscriber momentum, including 184,000 postpaid phone additions and more than 550,000 total mobility and broadband net adds, showing the core business is improving. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Free cash flow rose 24.4% and Verizon expanded its full-year buyback target to as much as $4.5 billion, both supportive of shareholder returns. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon also announced a more than $1 billion dark fiber deal with Google for AI data centers, suggesting potential upside from infrastructure demand and additional AI-related contracts. Reuters Google deal article
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue came in below Wall Street expectations and was slightly lower year over year, so top-line pressure is still a concern. Verizon earnings report
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity was unusually heavy, with traders buying more call options than normal, which may reflect speculative bullish positioning rather than fundamental news. GuruFocus earnings call highlights

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on VZ shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Barclays cut their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Dbs Bank lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.03.

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.