Greenberg Financial Group Acquires Shares of 14,499 Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Greenberg Financial Group acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 14,499 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $591,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 373,904,749 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $16,433,114,000 after buying an additional 1,117,733 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 215,490,064 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,470,788,000 after buying an additional 7,276,809 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,265,695 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,989,427,000 after purchasing an additional 557,576 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.5% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 28,188,066 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,238,866,000 after purchasing an additional 1,203,445 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.9% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 22,592,460 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $992,939,000 after purchasing an additional 646,537 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: High, rising dividend and yield support income buying — outlets note Verizon’s >5% yield and that the company continues to raise payouts, which attracts yield-focused investors and underpins downside. These Companies Pay 5% Dividend Yields, and They’re Hiking Them Too
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic actions (CEO cost cuts, $25B buyback authorization, Frontier acquisition expanding fiber) and guidance for rising free cash flow are cited as medium-term catalysts that support upside once macro sentiment stabilizes. The War Won’t Last Forever: 3 Stocks That Could Lead the Recovery
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst estimate tweak: Erste Group nudged FY2027 EPS forecasts slightly higher and maintains a bullish stance, a vote of confidence that can help sentiment among value investors and long-term holders.
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation / pullback analysis: Several outlets weigh whether the recent week/month pullback creates a buying opportunity given multi-year gains and a lower relative price — useful context for value-oriented traders deciding entry points. Is Verizon Communications (VZ) Offering An Opportunity After Recent Share Price Pullback?
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory/marketing ruling: The National Advertising Division found Verizon’s disclosures around a promotional price increase to be adequate — removes a small regulatory/PR overhang but is unlikely to move the stock materially. In Fast-Track SWIFT Challenge, National Advertising Division Finds Verizon Wireless Pricing Disclosures Adequate
• Negative Sentiment: DBS Bank downgrade (Buy → Hold, $52 PT) signals some sell-side skepticism that the rally has priced in much of the near-term upside; such downgrades can prompt profit-taking. Verizon Cut to Hold at DBS Bank: Is the Telecom Giant Running Out of Upside?
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder proposals on board structure, climate oversight and ESG/DEI-linked pay have drawn proxy advisory scrutiny — governance fights can increase volatility and complicate investor sentiment into the AGM. Verizon Shareholder Push Raises Questions On Governance Climate Oversight And Valuation
• Negative Sentiment: Dividend durability debate: comparative pieces flag nuance versus peers (e.g., AT&T) and discuss potential pressures — the debate can unsettle some income investors and create selling pressure if concerns spread. Verizon vs. AT&T: One Telecom Dividend Is on Shaky Ground

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total transaction of $9,922,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. This represents a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $428,450.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,189,100. This represents a 16.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 1.3%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $47.98 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $202.38 billion, a PE ratio of 11.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.91. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $49.10 and a 200 day moving average of $43.57.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company 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. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.9%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Scotiabank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Evercore boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.56.

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.