Arnhold LLC Boosts Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Arnhold LLC increased its Verizon stake by 9.1% in the fourth quarter, buying 37,500 additional shares and bringing its total to 450,251 shares worth about $18.3 million.
• Other institutions also added to or initiated positions in Verizon, and hedge funds and other institutional investors now own 62.06% of the stock.
• Verizon posted solid quarterly results, beating EPS estimates with $1.28 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with an average target price of $50.59.

Arnhold LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 9.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 450,251 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 37,500 shares during the period. Verizon Communications makes up about 1.4% of Arnhold LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Arnhold LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $18,339,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 490.0% during the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 43,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,189,100. The trade was a 16.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, William Blair upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Verizon Communications stock opened at $48.43 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.39 and a 52 week high of $51.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $48.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $202.23 billion, a PE ratio of 11.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.24.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The firm had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.19 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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