Caxton Associates LLP Has $1.38 Million Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Caxton Associates LLP cut its Verizon stake by 59.2% in the first quarter, leaving it with 27,470 shares valued at about $1.38 million.
• Verizon reported better-than-expected Q2 earnings of $1.30 per share, while revenue came in below estimates and was slightly lower year over year.
• The company raised full-year 2026 guidance and boosted buyback plans after showing stronger subscriber growth, free cash flow, and improved mobility and broadband momentum.

Caxton Associates LLP cut its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 59.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,470 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 39,813 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,379,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Aspen Grove Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at $234,000. Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 6.9% during the first quarter. Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc. now owns 34,299 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,722,000 after acquiring an additional 2,225 shares during the period. RMG Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 54.0% during the first quarter. RMG Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,138 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares during the period. Dickmeyer Boyce Financial Management Inc. bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at about $2,905,000. Finally, Gibbs Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 59.9% in the first quarter. Gibbs Wealth Management now owns 96,220 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,830,000 after acquiring an additional 36,051 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon beat Q2 adjusted EPS estimates at $1.30 versus $1.27 expected, helped by record EBITDA margins and stronger cash generation. Verizon earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its full-year 2026 guidance for adjusted EPS, mobility and broadband service revenue, and free cash flow, signaling management confidence in the outlook. Reuters guidance article
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon posted better-than-expected subscriber momentum, including 184,000 postpaid phone additions and more than 550,000 total mobility and broadband net adds, showing the core business is improving. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Free cash flow rose 24.4% and Verizon expanded its full-year buyback target to as much as $4.5 billion, both supportive of shareholder returns. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon also announced a more than $1 billion dark fiber deal with Google for AI data centers, suggesting potential upside from infrastructure demand and additional AI-related contracts. Reuters Google deal article
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue came in below Wall Street expectations and was slightly lower year over year, so top-line pressure is still a concern. Verizon earnings report
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity was unusually heavy, with traders buying more call options than normal, which may reflect speculative bullish positioning rather than fundamental news. GuruFocus earnings call highlights

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $43.00 target price on the stock. Dbs Bank cut shares of Verizon Communications from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $54.50 to $51.50 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $50.03.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 5.7%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $46.34 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.20. The stock has a market cap of $193.47 billion, a PE ratio of 12.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.39 and a 12 month high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The firm had revenue of $34.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. Research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.1%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 69.02%.

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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