Ritholtz Wealth Management Has $7.51 Million Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Ritholtz Wealth Management trimmed its Verizon stake by 19.2% to 184,351 shares, leaving a position worth about $7.51 million at the end of the quarter.
• Verizon raised its quarterly dividend to $0.7075 (annualized $2.83), implying a 6.1% yield, with an ex-dividend date of April 10 and payment on May 1.
• Significant insider selling occurred recently: director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares (~$9.92M) and insiders have sold 218,148 shares (~$10.78M) over the last 90 days, while insiders own just 0.10% of the stock.

Ritholtz Wealth Management reduced its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 19.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 184,351 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 43,715 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $7,509,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. McLean Asset Management Corp grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.9% during the third quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 8,571 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $355,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the third quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 71,541 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $3,144,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Cascade Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the third quarter. Cascade Financial Partners LLC now owns 7,318 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $322,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the second quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. now owns 30,400 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,315,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centurion Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.1% during the third quarter. Centurion Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,490 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $285,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. William Blair raised shares of Verizon Communications to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.56.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 3.6%

VZ opened at $46.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The company's 50-day moving average is $49.29 and its 200 day moving average is $43.62. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $192.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.37, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. The firm'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. Research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a $0.7075 dividend. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is presently 69.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verizon Communications news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of Verizon Communications 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 sale, the director owned 145,069 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $428,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,189,100. This represents a 16.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock valued at $10,780,356. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

More Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group issued an optimistic forecast for Verizon’s upcoming earnings, which supports upside expectations for EPS and could reinforce buy-side interest. Erste Group Bank Issues Optimistic Forecast for VZ Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large call option activity (≈326k calls bought, ~300% above normal) signals speculative or hedged bullish positioning by options traders and can presage short-term upward pressure if buyers are directional. (market data)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are slightly revising fair value estimates upward as Verizon shows subscriber progress and cost-cutting; but the shift is modest and reflects mixed views on sustainability of margins and disclosure quality. How Verizon (VZ) Story Is Shifting As Cost Cuts Progress And Transparency Concerns Grow
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentators (including Jim Cramer) note Verizon’s operational moves and new leadership as constructive; this supports sentiment but hasn’t erased headwinds from heavy spending and telecom competition. Jim Cramer Says “Verizon’s Actually Got Some Game Here”
• Negative Sentiment: DBS Bank downgraded Verizon from Buy to Hold and set a $52 target, a visible analyst move that can pressure sentiment and prompt some profit-taking after the stock’s strong recent run. DBS Bank Downgrades Verizon (VZ) to Hold Despite Strong Stock Performance
• Negative Sentiment: Verizon is publicly urging shareholders to reject several activist proposals (CEO/chair split, ESG-pay linkage, increased climate oversight). The proxy fight heightens governance uncertainty and could sour some institutional investors ahead of the May 21 annual meeting. How Investors May Respond To Verizon (VZ) Resisting Activist Push On Governance, ESG Pay, And Climate Oversight
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst notes and coverage have spotlighted transparency and disclosure concerns alongside aggressive cost-cutting and heavy fiber/build spending — a combination that raises near-term execution and margin risk. How Verizon (VZ) Story Is Shifting As Cost Cuts Progress And Transparency Concerns Grow

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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