Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 1,972,634 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its Verizon stake by 6.4% in Q1, buying 1,972,634 shares and bringing its total holding to 32.7 million shares worth about $1.64 billion.
• Verizon’s latest earnings beat EPS expectations, with quarterly EPS of $1.28 versus the $1.21 consensus, while revenue came in slightly below estimates at $34.44 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.7075 per share, equal to an annualized yield of about 6.5%, as analysts maintain a generally cautious stance with a consensus rating of Hold.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 6.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,734,998 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 1,972,634 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises 0.3% of Dimensional Fund Advisors LP's portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 0.78% of Verizon Communications worth $1,643,339,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. RKL Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 4.3% during the first quarter. RKL Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,338 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 2,765 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 32.7% during the 1st quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 888 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 35,023 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,426,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,305 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $257,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on VZ shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Barclays lowered their target price on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price target on Verizon Communications from $54.50 to $51.50 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $50.09.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $43.57 on Monday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.39 and a twelve month 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $181.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.26.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. The business's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 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. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.5%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is currently 69.02%.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon is moving to sell 274 company-owned retail stores to franchisees and cut roughly 3,000 jobs, a restructuring that could lower operating costs and improve margins over time. Reuters: Verizon to shed 274 stores, lay off another 500 corporate employees
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction has been favorable to the cost-reset story, with articles noting VZ rose as investors responded to the store shakeup and expense reduction plans. Yahoo Finance: VZ Stock Rises — Verizon Moves To Slash Costs With Major Store Shakeup
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group Bank slightly raised its FY2026 earnings estimate for Verizon and kept a Hold rating, suggesting only modest near-term earnings improvement. MarketBeat analyst update
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon is expected to report earnings on Friday, which keeps investors focused on whether the restructuring and broadband growth can offset slower revenue trends. American Banking News: Verizon Communications (VZ) to Post Earnings on Friday
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts are cautioning that Verizon already trades at a premium relative to peers, which could limit upside if earnings growth disappoints. Trefis: VZ Earns Its Premium Over Peers. Now What?
• Negative Sentiment: Scotiabank also lowered its price target to $51.50, reflecting some skepticism about the pace of Verizon’s improvement. American Banking News: Verizon Communications NYSE: VZ Price Target Lowered to $51.50 at Scotiabank

Verizon Communications Company 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.

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