Ascent Group LLC Decreases Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Ascent Group LLC trimmed its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 7.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 149,468 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 11,645 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $6,088,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,759,000 after buying an additional 16,704 shares during the last quarter. United Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 7,843 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 806 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 24,365 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,054,000 after acquiring an additional 1,669 shares during the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 17.5% in the second quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 20,539 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $889,000 after acquiring an additional 3,061 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SCS Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 201.0% during the second quarter. SCS Capital Management LLC now owns 29,469 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,275,000 after acquiring an additional 19,680 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ opened at $49.46 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $208.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.21, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.87 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 $51.68. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $48.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.47.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 EPS 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.10 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a $0.7075 dividend. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.15%.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In related news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $428,450.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at $2,189,100. The trade was a 16.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. This represents a 17.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock valued at $10,780,356. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VZ. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. William Blair upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.56.

Verizon Communications 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.