Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Boosts Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Pictet Asset Management increased its Verizon stake by 9.4% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 2.65 million shares worth about $132.8 million.
• Several other institutional investors also added to Verizon positions, and hedge funds and other institutions now own 62.06% of the company.
• Verizon reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.28 per share, and it also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.7075 per share, implying a 6.1% yield.

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 9.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,646,170 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after acquiring an additional 226,532 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned approximately 0.06% of Verizon Communications worth $132,839,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 191.5% during the first quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 235,368 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $11,815,000 after purchasing an additional 154,617 shares in the last quarter. Cambient Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 30.2% in the first quarter. Cambient Family Office LLC now owns 16,887 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $848,000 after purchasing an additional 3,914 shares during the period. Lewis Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.4% in the first quarter. Lewis Asset Management LLC now owns 20,007 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,004,000 after buying an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. River Street Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth approximately $522,000. Finally, Signature Wealth Management Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Signature Wealth Management Partners LLC now owns 11,210 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 436 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on VZ. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Barclays boosted 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. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of VZ opened at $46.43 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $46.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.86. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $193.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.33, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.24.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The company had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 69.02%.

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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