Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Stock Now Rated "Hold" by Wall Street Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate Verizon “Hold” overall: Twelve of 20 analysts recommend holding the stock, while eight recommend buying it; the average 12-month price target is $50.80.
• Verizon beat third-quarter earnings expectations with adjusted EPS of $1.31 and added 406,000 postpaid phone subscribers, but revenue rose only 1.5% to $34.31 billion, missing estimates.
• The company raised its 2026 outlook and signed a more than $2 billion AWS agreement, while investors remain watchful of limited top-line growth and potential competition from SpaceX; Verizon’s annualized dividend yield is approximately 6.6%.

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the twenty brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $50.80.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Moffett Nathanson decreased their target price on Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $51.50 to $50.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 9th.

Verizon Communications News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.31 per share, above the $1.27 consensus estimate. EBITDA margins improved to 40.2%, while net income increased year over year. Verizon Beats Q3 Earnings Estimates on Strong Margins, Revenues Miss
• Positive Sentiment: Wireless customer trends were notably strong. Verizon added 406,000 postpaid phone subscribers—its best third-quarter result in five years—and 137,000 postpaid accounts. Broadband additions totaled 314,000. Verizon Delivers Another Record-Breaking Quarter
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its 2026 outlook for adjusted EPS, postpaid phone additions and free cash flow for the third consecutive quarter. Verizon now expects adjusted EPS of approximately $5.04 to $5.06 and free-cash-flow growth approaching 12%. Verizon Raises 2026 Outlook After Strong Postpaid Subscriber Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon signed a more than $2 billion agreement with Amazon Web Services to expand distributed computing and fiber infrastructure supporting AI workloads. The deal provides a new growth avenue beyond the mature wireless business. Verizon Lifts Outlook, Inks Amazon Deal Worth More Than $2 Billion
• Neutral Sentiment: Management said SpaceX’s proposed nationwide wireless service would require extensive land-based infrastructure and years of investment to become competitive, suggesting a longer-term rather than immediate threat. Verizon Says SpaceX Will Need Years and Major Investment
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue rose only 1.5% to $34.31 billion, missing analysts’ $34.77 billion estimate. The miss—along with reports of lower phone upgrades—overshadowed the earnings beat and raised concerns about limited top-line growth in Verizon’s mature market. Verizon Stock Falls on Revenue Miss Amid Lower Phone Upgrades
• Negative Sentiment: Investors also remain cautious about potential disruption from SpaceX’s planned mobile network, which could increase pricing pressure and customer-acquisition costs across the wireless industry.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.48, for a total transaction of $48,928.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,966 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,446,487.68. This trade represents a 1.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 9,900 shares of company stock worth $469,073 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SYM FINANCIAL Corp boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 2.8% during the third quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 8,666 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $398,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 9.2% in the third quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 9,048 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 759 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 9.6% in the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 17,776 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $815,000 after purchasing an additional 1,563 shares during the last quarter. DMC Group LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 9.8% in the third quarter. DMC Group LLC now owns 20,703 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $950,000 after purchasing an additional 1,848 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 9.5% during the third quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 13,346 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $612,000 after purchasing an additional 1,160 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $43.18 on Tuesday. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $47.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.65. Verizon Communications has a 52 week low of $38.68 and a 52 week high of $51.68. The stock has a market cap of $179.39 billion, a PE ratio of 11.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 26th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 11.64%. The firm had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.21 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.6%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 73.70%.

About Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications Inc is a telecommunications company that provides wireless communications, broadband, and digital connectivity services. Through its consumer business, Verizon offers mobile voice and data plans, smartphones and other connected devices, home internet, fixed wireless access, and fiber-optic broadband services under the Fios brand.

Verizon also serves businesses, government agencies, and other organizations with wireless connectivity, private networks, internet and data services, managed communications, cloud and security solutions, and Internet of Things services.

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