Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. Buys 15,748 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 15.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 116,865 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 15,748 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $5,136,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VZ. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 4.3% in the third quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 335,856 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $14,761,000 after purchasing an additional 13,787 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 379,174 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $16,665,000 after buying an additional 46,699 shares in the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 18.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 140,981 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $6,196,000 after buying an additional 21,915 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 378.7% in the 3rd quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 93,732 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,120,000 after buying an additional 74,151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,667,402 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $161,182,000 after buying an additional 99,400 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Daiwa Capital upgraded Verizon, a bullish broker action that likely helped lift sentiment and buying interest in the stock. Daiwa Capital upgrades Verizon Communications (VZ)
• Positive Sentiment: Brokerage coverage shows a constructive tilt: an aggregate “Moderate Buy” consensus helps validate demand among institutional investors and supports the stock’s rebound. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend-focused coverage is highlighting Verizon as a reliable income name this year, which can attract retail and institutional dividend-seeking flows that support the share price. Retirees Are Winning Big in 2026: 3 Popular Dividend Stocks Are Soaring
• Positive Sentiment: Underlying fundamentals remain supportive: Verizon beat Q4 revenue and EPS expectations and set FY2026 EPS guidance near $4.90–4.95, which gives investors confidence in cash flow and dividend coverage. (Company Q4 earnings release)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysis pieces are debating whether the recent price rebound already reflects Verizon’s long‑term value — useful reading for investors weighing further entry points versus taking profits. Is Verizon (VZ) Pricing Reflect Long Term Value After Recent Share Price Rebound
• Negative Sentiment: Balance-sheet and liquidity metrics remain points of caution: debt-to-equity is elevated and current/quick ratios are below 1, which could constrain capital flexibility if macro or capex pressures rise.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Barclays assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings raised Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. One investment 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 stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.02.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,976,739.60. This trade 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 available at this link. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $49.24 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $42.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.14. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.39 and a 52-week high of $50.24. 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 capitalization of $207.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 12.43%.The company had revenue of $36.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $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. As a group, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. 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. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 68.15%.

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.