Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Stake Raised by Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC

Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 10.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 465,480 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 44,560 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications accounts for about 2.6% of Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $23,367,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,357,158,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Verizon Communications by 31.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 31,584,162 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,286,423,000 after buying an additional 7,509,055 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 222,951,399 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,080,810,000 after buying an additional 7,461,335 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 116,570,816 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,747,930,000 after acquiring an additional 5,851,715 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $15,453,058,000 after acquiring an additional 5,497,598 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon is being highlighted as a potentially attractive dividend stock, with Barron’s saying now may be a good time to buy income-oriented names like VZ as yields look more compelling. Why Verizon, Clorox and More Dividend Stocks Are Flashing a Buy Signal
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon won a new automotive connectivity contract through its KDDI partnership, becoming the U.S. connectivity provider for newly manufactured BMW Group vehicles, which could support growth in its enterprise and IoT business. Verizon named U.S. connectivity provider for newly manufactured BMW Group vehicles through KDDI partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts also flagged Verizon as a telecom name worth owning, noting its fiber and wireless expansion strategy and suggesting it may have a good setup for its next earnings report. T or VZ: Which Telecom Stock Deserves a Place in Your Portfolio?
• Positive Sentiment: Another recent report said Verizon has a strong earnings surprise history and could beat estimates again, which tends to support investor confidence ahead of results. Will Verizon (VZ) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman Sachs won asset-management mandates tied to Verizon’s retirement assets, but this is mainly a financial-services arrangement rather than an operational development for Verizon. Goldman Sachs wins $70 billion in asset management deals with Verizon, Lockheed Martin
• Neutral Sentiment: Some broader commentary on enterprise internet reliability and telecom competition, including Starlink-related pressure, may add noise to the sector outlook, but it is not a direct negative catalyst for Verizon itself. Verizon (NYSE:VZ) Dow Exit Deepens Starlink Market Pressure

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VZ shares. Citigroup boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Wednesday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Dbs Bank lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.28.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.2%

Verizon Communications stock traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $42.14. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 27,697,528 shares, compared to its average volume of 33,171,120. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.39 and a 52-week high of $51.68. The company has a market cap of $175.95 billion, a PE ratio of 10.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $46.10 and its 200 day moving average is $45.97.

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

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.7%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 69.02%.

Verizon Communications Company 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.