Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Buys 69,780 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its Verizon stake by 171.1% in the fourth quarter, buying 69,780 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 110,559 shares worth about $4.5 million.
• Several other institutional investors also increased their Verizon positions, and overall institutional ownership now stands at 62.06% of the stock.
• Verizon reported better-than-expected earnings of $1.28 per share for the latest quarter, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $50.59.

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 171.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 110,559 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 69,780 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,503,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VZ. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 335,856 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $14,761,000 after buying an additional 13,787 shares during the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 331,962 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $13,521,000 after buying an additional 17,495 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its position 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. Econ Financial Services Corp lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. Econ Financial Services Corp now owns 78,172 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $3,184,000 after buying an additional 14,862 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedbush Securities Inc. lifted its position in 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 in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total value of $9,922,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 145,069 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $428,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at $2,189,100. This trade represents a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Dbs Bank lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Williams Trading set a $54.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.6%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $47.98 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $48.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.35. The firm has a market cap of $200.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.70, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.64. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.39 and a 52-week high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. Verizon Communications's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 EPS for the current year.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon announced tender offers, exchange offers, and consent solicitations for multiple series of notes, a move that could help streamline debt, reduce financing complexity, and support long-term balance sheet management. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Verizon as a top-ranked growth stock and noted that the company continues to draw investor attention, which can reinforce the view that the stock remains attractive on valuation and fundamentals. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several recent articles focus on Verizon’s status as a watched name and on broader commentary about its investment story, suggesting steady market interest rather than a clear new catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon’s ongoing layoffs and AI-related restructuring may improve efficiency over time, but they also signal that management is still working through a major cost-reset and transition period. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Market commentary flagged Verizon as one of the communication-services names most exposed to rising rates, since its dividend becomes less competitive versus Treasuries and investors may rotate away from telecom income stocks. Article Title

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding VZ? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.