Shrier Wealth Management LLC Makes New Investment in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Shrier Wealth Management bought a new position of 44,606 shares of Verizon in Q4, valued at approximately $1.817 million.
• Verizon raised its quarterly dividend to $0.7075 (annualized $2.83), a yield of about 5.6%; the ex-dividend date is April 10 and the payment is May 1.
• Several analysts have raised ratings and price targets (including Scotiabank and Oppenheimer), leaving a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus price target of $50.56.

Shrier Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 44,606 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock, valued at approximately $1,817,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. TruNorth Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 95.3% in the third quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 739.5% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Silicon Valley Capital Partners lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 52.4% during the 2nd quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 782 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank upgraded Verizon Communications from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a report on Monday, March 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer increased 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $50.56.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.3%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $50.15 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.91. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.68. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $211.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.31.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. Verizon Communications's quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.7075 per share. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.6%. This is a boost from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total value of $9,922,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at $7,196,873.09. This trade represents a 57.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares in the company, valued at $1,976,739.60. The trade was a 17.86% 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. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Federal court granted Verizon a preliminary injunction blocking a T‑Mobile ad campaign that promised large savings to switch — a competitive win that protects Verizon’s customer messaging and could limit aggressive poaching by a rival. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Citi recently raised its price target to $55, signaling some analyst conviction behind upside potential and supporting the narrative that Verizon’s cost cuts and acquisition could boost margins. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighting Verizon as a top dividend stock and management’s actions (CEO Dan Schulman’s cost cuts and the Frontier acquisition) reinforces the income/turnaround thesis that has supported the rally earlier this year. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target to $47 (maintaining an "Equal Weight" rating), citing signs of a subscriber turnaround and telecom’s defensive appeal — the move is a mild vote of confidence but the PT still sits below the current market price, so its net impact is mixed. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon set its Q1 2026 earnings date for April 27. The upcoming report and webcast present a catalyst for renewed volatility as investors look for subscriber trends and progress on margin targets. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon is a trending stock on some retail/coverage sites (Zacks, Business Insider), which can increase attention and trading volume but doesn't directly change fundamentals. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: The company raised the price on a heavily discounted customer offer — a potential short-term revenue boost but a risk for churn if customers react negatively, which could weigh on subscriber-growth confidence. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Recent data show notable insider selling activity and some large institutional reductions in recent quarters — these flows can add selling pressure or at least create caution among investors. Article Title

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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