Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Stock Position Raised by Assetmark Inc.

Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,667,402 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 99,400 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. owned 0.09% of Verizon Communications worth $161,182,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Advantage Trust Co increased its position in Verizon Communications by 549.5% in the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 591 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 95.3% during the 3rd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 739.5% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 599 shares during the period. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Silicon Valley Capital Partners lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 52.4% in the 2nd quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 782 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Williams Trading set a $54.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.02.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE:VZ opened at $49.41 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $41.46 and its 200-day moving average is $41.89. 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 12 month low of $38.39 and a 12 month high of $50.24. The firm has a market cap of $208.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.33.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. Verizon Communications’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. This represents a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.