Savant Capital LLC Sells 31,314 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Savant Capital LLC cut its Verizon stake by 27.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 31,314 shares and leaving it with 80,757 shares valued at about $3.29 million.
• Several large institutional investors were active in Verizon as well, including State Street, Vanguard, and Capital World Investors, with institutions now owning 62.06% of the stock.
• Verizon reported quarterly EPS of $1.28, beating estimates, while revenue came in slightly below expectations; analysts currently rate the stock Moderate Buy with a consensus target price of $50.59.

Savant Capital LLC trimmed its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 27.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 80,757 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 31,314 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,289,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VZ. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 215,490,064 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $9,470,788,000 after acquiring an additional 7,276,809 shares in the last quarter. 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. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 51.1% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,512,228 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $637,812,000 after purchasing an additional 4,905,101 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at about $161,346,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 8,848,766 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $385,983,000 after purchasing an additional 2,965,033 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on VZ. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Dbs Bank cut shares of Verizon Communications from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, March 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $47.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $199.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.67, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.24. 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's 50-day simple moving average is $47.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.07. 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 announced its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.82 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $428,450.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,189,100. This trade represents a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

About Verizon Communications

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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