Morgan Stanley Issues Positive Forecast for Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) had its price target increased by Morgan Stanley from $47.00 to $49.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the cell phone carrier’s stock.

VZ has been the topic of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.55.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $44.73 on Monday. Verizon Communications has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $47.35. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company has a market cap of $188.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.15 and a beta of 0.33.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The company had revenue of $36.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.10 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.3%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 68.15%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position 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. Hudock Inc. raised its position in Verizon Communications by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Hudock Inc. now owns 39,842 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,724,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 8,571 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 71,541 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $3,144,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Camden National Bank boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Camden National Bank now owns 5,666 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $245,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat, Frontier deal and $25B buyback — Verizon reported better-than-expected Q4 results and framed the Frontier transaction as a way to cut costs; management also announced a sizable share-repurchase plan that boosts cash-return prospects and EPS leverage. Verizon Resets Story With Frontier Deal
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price-target increases — Multiple firms raised targets (Evercore to $50, Scotiabank to $50.25, Morgan Stanley to $49), signaling renewed street confidence and potential upside from current levels. Benzinga coverage Scotiabank note
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend raise — Verizon increased its quarterly payout to $0.7075 (annualized yield ~6.4%), reinforcing its income-appeal to dividend-focused investors and supporting valuation multiples for yield-sensitive buyers.
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction to earnings — Coverage notes VZ’s post-earnings rally and significant stock moves after the beat, which is attracting momentum and heightened trading interest. AAII: Why VZ is up
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually high options volume — Elevated options activity indicates speculative positioning or hedging around catalysts (earnings, buyback, Frontier deal). This can amplify intraday moves but is ambiguous for direction. Options volume report
• Neutral Sentiment: Former CEO Hans Vestberg joins Digi Power X as advisor — Not a direct operational development for Verizon but notable given his role in Verizon’s 5G rollout; mostly peripheral to VZ fundamentals. Vestberg to Digi Power X
• Negative Sentiment: Customer losses tied to pricing — Multiple reports and commentary highlight management’s admission that price hikes cost the company millions of customers, a risk to long-term subscriber growth and ARPU sustainability. USAToday: Price hikes lost customers Fool: Pricing lost customers
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst/strategist caution on buybacks — Some commentary argues buybacks alone aren’t enough to fix competitive or growth issues, warning investors not to overvalue EPS-lift without sustainable revenue improvement. Seeking Alpha: Needs more than buyback

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.