Cooke & Bieler LP Trims Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Cooke & Bieler LP trimmed its Verizon stake by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, selling 22,209 shares and ending with 2,244,709 shares valued at about $91.4 million.
• Verizon reported Q1 earnings of $1.28 per share, topping analyst estimates of $1.21, while revenue of $34.44 billion came in slightly below expectations.
• Despite mixed analyst views, Wall Street’s consensus on VZ remains “Moderate Buy” with a target price of $50.59, and the stock was recently trading near $48.43.

Cooke & Bieler LP cut its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,244,709 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 22,209 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP owned about 0.05% of Verizon Communications worth $91,427,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised 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 worth $14,761,000 after purchasing an additional 13,787 shares during the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 331,962 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $13,521,000 after purchasing an additional 17,495 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 14.0% during the third 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 boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 23.5% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 18.4% during the third 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 during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,189,100. This trade represents a 16.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of VZ opened at $48.43 on Tuesday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $48.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.87. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $51.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market cap of $202.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.24.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.82 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Williams Trading set a $54.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Dbs Bank lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $50.59.

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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