Flossbach Von Storch SE Boosts Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Flossbach Von Storch SE raised its stake in Verizon (VZ) by 6.1% in Q4 to 378,055 shares (≈$15.4M), while large institutions like Vanguard and State Street also hold sizable positions — institutional ownership stands at 62.06%.
• Verizon reported Q1 adjusted EPS of $1.28 (above estimates) with a slight revenue miss, but posted surprise postpaid subscriber growth, record adjusted EBITDA and raised FY‑2026 guidance to $4.95–$4.99, supporting a more positive outlook.
• The company boosted its quarterly dividend to $0.7075 (annualized $2.83, ≈6.0% yield), even as insiders have been net sellers — 218,148 shares sold in the past 90 days (insiders now own 0.03%).

Flossbach Von Storch SE raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 378,055 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after buying an additional 21,876 shares during the quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $15,398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $15,453,058,000 after purchasing an additional 5,497,598 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 215,490,064 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $9,470,788,000 after purchasing an additional 7,276,809 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,265,695 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,989,427,000 after purchasing an additional 557,576 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 28,188,066 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,238,866,000 after purchasing an additional 1,203,445 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.9% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 22,592,460 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $992,939,000 after buying an additional 646,537 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 44,045 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,976,739.60. The trade was a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 43,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,189,100. This trade represents a 16.37% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock valued at $10,780,356 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. KeyCorp reiterated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, William Blair raised Verizon Communications to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.22.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $47.04 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $49.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company has a market cap of $196.63 billion, a PE ratio of 11.62, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.29. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.39 and a 52-week high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.79 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.19 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.9 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.0%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.88%.

Trending Headlines about Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 earnings beat and guidance raise — Verizon reported $1.28 adjusted EPS (above estimates) and raised FY‑2026 EPS guidance to $4.95–4.99, which supports higher earnings visibility and underpins the rally. Verizon lifts annual profit forecast (Reuters)
• Positive Sentiment: Surprise subscriber growth — Verizon posted its first positive first‑quarter postpaid phone net adds since 2013, a meaningful operational inflection that eases investor concerns about subscriber trends. Verizon Adds Wireless Subscribers (WSJ)
• Positive Sentiment: Record adjusted EBITDA and margin strength — Management highlighted highest quarterly adjusted EBITDA in company history and stronger margins, which helped the company beat on the bottom line despite the revenue miss. Zacks: VZ beats Q1 on margins
• Positive Sentiment: Pipeline to monetize fiber/5G for AI — Verizon says it’s in advanced talks with hyperscalers and enterprises to deploy fiber and 5G for AI infrastructure, a potential multi‑billion dollar revenue opportunity that supports upside to growth longer term. Proactive: Verizon lifts profit guidance, AI opportunity
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend and cash flow support — Commentary and coverage note Verizon’s attractive ~6% yield and management’s commitment to the payout, which keeps the stock appealing to income investors. The Motley Fool: 6% dividend yield
• Neutral Sentiment: Brand/promotions — Verizon is running customer promotions tied to FIFA World Cup 2026 tickets, which may help customer engagement and marketing, but is not material to near‑term financials. GlobeNewswire: World Cup ticket promotion
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue narrowly missed estimates — Q1 revenue of ~$34.4B was slightly below consensus, showing top‑line pressure (partly tied to a prior network outage). Investors are weighing revenue softness vs. margin and subscriber gains. Invezz: Revenue miss
• Negative Sentiment: Operational/headwind reminders — Management acknowledged a January network outage that pressured revenue, and competitive dynamics (e.g., T‑Mobile) remain a medium‑term risk to market share and ARPU. Yahoo Finance: T‑Mobile competitive backdrop

Verizon Communications 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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