F m Investments LLC Purchases 48,328 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• F m Investments LLC boosted its Verizon stake by 36.6% in Q3, buying 48,328 shares to hold 180,328 shares worth about $7.93 million.
• Verizon beat Q4 expectations with $1.09 EPS (vs. $1.06 est.), set FY2026 guidance of $4.90–$4.95 EPS, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.7075 (annualized $2.83, ~5.5% yield).
• Insiders sold roughly 218,148 shares (~$10.78M) over the last quarter, while institutional ownership stands at 62.06% and the consensus analyst view is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $50.03.

F m Investments LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 36.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 180,328 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 48,328 shares during the quarter. F m Investments LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $7,925,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at about $982,000. Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.5% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 523,578 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $23,011,000 after purchasing an additional 7,946 shares in the last quarter. Safeguard Investment Advisory Group LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 15.9% in the third quarter. Safeguard Investment Advisory Group LLC now owns 9,729 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $428,000 after purchasing an additional 1,338 shares during the period. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the third quarter valued at approximately $249,000. Finally, Legacy Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $287,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $51.36 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $45.41 and a 200-day moving average of $42.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $216.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.31. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.39 and a 12 month high of $51.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The business had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. Verizon Communications's revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This is an increase from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.5%. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is currently 68.15%.

Trending Headlines about Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4/earnings + guidance — Verizon beat Q4 EPS estimates and set FY2026 EPS guidance of $4.90–$4.95, reinforcing cash flow and dividend coverage that investors prize. This underpins the stock’s recent upward move and supports dividend-focused buying. MarketBeat VZ overview
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade/price target lift — Oppenheimer set a new $56 price target on VZ, suggesting upside from current levels and giving investors confidence in consensus estimates and valuation support. Oppenheimer price target
• Positive Sentiment: Partnership/enterprise traction — Coverage of Kodiak AI’s milestones highlights expanded partnerships with Verizon, signaling enterprise & network monetization opportunities beyond core wireless services. That diversification can boost long-term revenue potential. Kodiak AI partnership mention
• Neutral Sentiment: Subscriber momentum — Analysts note solid postpaid phone adds and fixed wireless subscriber growth, which improve churn and lifetime value but have yet to fully translate into stronger service revenue growth. This is constructive for ARPU stability and churn metrics. Zacks subscriber growth article
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue ceiling risk — Despite subscriber gains, analysts and company commentary expect wireless service revenues to remain roughly flat near-term, which could cap share-price upside until service revenue or margin expansion resumes. Zacks revenue outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend/resilience narrative — Coverage highlighting Verizon as a high-yield, U.S.-focused defensive stock has driven demand from income-focused investors amid geopolitical volatility; this supports a higher valuation multiple relative to risk-off peers. MarketBeat dividend safe-haven piece

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on VZ. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $48.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.03.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $428,450.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at $2,189,100. This represents a 16.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total value of $9,922,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

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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