Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 19.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 288,504 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 47,190 shares during the quarter. Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $12,215,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 222,951,399 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $9,080,810,000 after buying an additional 7,461,335 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 116,570,816 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $4,747,930,000 after acquiring an additional 5,851,715 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 102,632,509 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $4,168,080,000 after acquiring an additional 867,694 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 15.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 62,101,021 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $3,117,471,000 after acquiring an additional 8,289,877 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,357,158,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.1%
Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $50.18 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $51.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $208.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.07, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.25. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $45.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.38.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 19.48%. The business had revenue of $34.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $35.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.22 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. Analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.
Verizon Communications Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were paid a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.6%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.70%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.06, for a total transaction of $55,066.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 108,766 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,444,825.96. The trade was a 1.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
VZ has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Moffett Nathanson lowered their price objective on Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Freedom Capital upgraded Verizon Communications to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reduced their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $50.84.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on Verizon Communications
Verizon Communications Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
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