Great Lakes Advisors LLC Sells 53,047 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Great Lakes Advisors LLC cut its Verizon stake by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 53,047 shares and ending with 916,961 shares valued at about $37.35 million.
• Several large institutional investors also adjusted positions in Verizon, with Norges Bank opening a major new stake and firms like Vanguard and State Street increasing holdings. Institutional ownership now stands at 62.06% of the company.
• Verizon reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.28 per share, raised its FY2026 guidance, and recently announced a 6.0% dividend yield based on a $0.7075 quarterly payout.

Great Lakes Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 5.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 916,961 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 53,047 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $37,348,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VZ. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $2,357,158,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 31,584,162 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,286,423,000 after acquiring an additional 7,509,055 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted 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 acquiring an additional 7,276,809 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $15,453,058,000 after acquiring an additional 5,497,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $217,125,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $56.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Barclays raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Scotiabank raised Verizon Communications from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 0.2%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $47.04 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $196.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.47, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.24. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.39 and a 1-year high of $51.68. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $47.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $45.45.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The company had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.0%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.02%.

Verizon Communications News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Several recent commentaries argue Verizon looks undervalued, citing its roughly 6% dividend yield, strong free-cash-flow generation, and defensive appeal in a volatile market. One note also highlights raised 2026 guidance, mid-single-digit EPS growth expectations, and robust postpaid net adds as signs of improving operating momentum. Article: Verizon: A Unique Opportunity In An Expensive Market
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are also focusing on Verizon’s fiber expansion, including the Frontier acquisition, which should broaden its broadband footprint and improve its competitive position versus satellite-based connectivity rivals and other wireless peers. Article: Verizon: Satellite Pessimism Overly Done - Rich Upside And Income Potential Ahead
• Positive Sentiment: A market note said Verizon rose while the broader market dipped, reinforcing its image as a defensive stock that can hold up when investors rotate toward steadier income names. Article: Verizon Communications (VZ) Rises As Market Takes a Dip: Key Facts
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group slightly lowered its FY2027 EPS estimate for Verizon, but the change was minimal and the firm kept a Hold rating, suggesting only a modest impact on the stock. Source: MarketBeat analyst update
• Neutral Sentiment: Other recent articles compare Verizon with AT&T and AST SpaceMobile, but these pieces are mostly relative-value discussions rather than direct catalysts for VZ. Article: VZ vs. ASTS: Which Connectivity Stock is the Better Buy?
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary warns that Verizon still faces limits to future profitability improvement, meaning investors may want to temper expectations even though the stock has defensive qualities. Article: Verizon: A Good Defensive Play In Times Of Market Exuberance

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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