J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Has $13.05 Million Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. cut its Verizon stake by 11% in the fourth quarter, selling 42,505 shares and ending with 343,540 shares valued at about $13.05 million.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted their positions in Verizon, and hedge funds and other institutions now own 62.06% of the company’s stock.
• Verizon reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.28 per share, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.7075 per share, implying a 6.3% annualized yield.

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 11.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 343,540 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 42,505 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $13,052,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Prudential PLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 533,691 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $21,737,000 after purchasing an additional 9,707 shares during the last quarter. Avise Financial Cooperative Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth $620,000. Vise Technologies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 53.3% during the 4th quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 186,136 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $7,581,000 after purchasing an additional 64,756 shares during the last quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 18,648 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $760,000 after acquiring an additional 2,730 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,382,975 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $97,059,000 after acquiring an additional 316,854 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $44.87 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.39 and a 1 year high of $51.68. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $47.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $187.37 billion, a PE ratio of 10.94, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.24.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. Verizon Communications'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. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

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 6.3%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.02%.

Trending Headlines about Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon declared its regular quarterly dividend of $0.7075 per share, unchanged from the prior quarter, which reinforces the company’s appeal to income-focused investors. Verizon declares quarterly dividend on June 4, 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon reported the results of its 2026 annual shareholder meeting, where shareholders elected all nine director nominees. This is routine governance news and does not appear to materially change the investment outlook. Verizon Communications (VZ) Announced Results for Annual 2026 Shareholder Meeting
• Negative Sentiment: The U.S. Supreme Court backed the FCC’s fine-collection process in a case involving Verizon and AT&T, removing a legal challenge that wireless carriers had hoped might limit regulatory penalties. Investors may view this as a modest negative for carrier risk exposure. US Supreme Court backs FCC in clash with wireless carriers over fines
• Negative Sentiment: Recent market coverage also highlighted Verizon’s weaker trading session versus the broader market, and another report noted operational friction from a strict in-store policy that could frustrate customers. Together, these items point to short-term sentiment pressure on the stock. Why Verizon Communications (VZ) Dipped More Than Broader Market Today

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on VZ shares. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Friday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.59.

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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