Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Up 1.4% After Strong Earnings

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) shot up 1.4% during trading on Monday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $48.65 and last traded at $47.0410. 37,736,657 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 22% from the average session volume of 30,869,502 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.38.

The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.79 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a $0.7075 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 69.88%.

Key Headlines Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Beat-and-raise: Verizon reported Q1 adjusted EPS above estimates and raised FY‑2026 EPS guidance to $4.95–$4.99, giving investors confidence in cash flow and earnings visibility. Verizon lifts annual profit forecast (Reuters)
• Positive Sentiment: Subscriber and margin surprise: Verizon delivered its first positive Q1 postpaid phone net adds since 2013 and reported record adjusted EBITDA and stronger margins — a core reason traders are rewarding the stock despite a modest revenue miss. Verizon’s Turnaround Story (Yahoo Finance)
• Positive Sentiment: Large‑addressable AI/5G opportunity: Management said it is in advanced talks with hyperscalers, cloud providers and large enterprises to deploy fiber + 5G for AI infrastructure — a potential multibillion-dollar revenue stream if commercialized. Verizon lifts profit guidance after solid Q1 (Proactive)
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue slight miss: Q1 revenue of ~$34.4B narrowly missed consensus (~$34.8B); investors are focusing on margins, EBITDA and subs instead of the top‑line shortfall. Why investors are ignoring the revenue miss (Invezz)
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market backdrop: The Dow was softer while chip/AI names drove market moves; sector and index action may amplify or temper VZ’s intraday reaction. Stock Market Today: Dow Dips (Yahoo Finance)
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue headwinds from outage: Management noted that a January network outage weighed on revenue — a reminder that operational incidents can blunt top‑line momentum even as costs and margins improve. Verizon adds wireless subscribers but outage affected revenue (WSJ)

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on VZ. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $49.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. William Blair upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.22.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total transaction of $9,922,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at $7,196,873.09. This represents a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $428,450.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,189,100. This trade represents a 16.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.6% during the first quarter. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 23,760 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,193,000 after buying an additional 602 shares during the last quarter. Capital Financial Group Inc. Co. ADV increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.3% during the first quarter. Capital Financial Group Inc. Co. ADV now owns 37,573 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,886,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 10.3% during the first quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 208,337 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $10,459,000 after buying an additional 19,392 shares during the last quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 5.3% during the first quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC now owns 60,676 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $3,046,000 after buying an additional 3,048 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osborne Partners Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 1.4%

The firm has a market capitalization of $196.63 billion, a PE ratio of 11.62, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.29. 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 stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $49.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.90.

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.