Tredje AP fonden Cuts Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Tredje AP fonden reduced its Verizon stake by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 72,642 shares and leaving it with 687,901 shares valued at about $28.0 million.
• Verizon’s latest quarterly results beat earnings expectations, reporting $1.28 EPS versus the $1.21 estimate, though revenue of $34.44 billion came in slightly below forecasts.
• Analysts remain mixed but broadly positive, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $50.59; several firms recently adjusted ratings and targets, including JPMorgan and Oppenheimer raising theirs.

Tredje AP fonden trimmed its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 9.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 687,901 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 72,642 shares during the period. Tredje AP fonden's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $28,018,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in Verizon Communications by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,631,793 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $66,463,000 after buying an additional 52,077 shares during the last quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 16.2% in the fourth quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 48,968 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,994,000 after acquiring an additional 6,815 shares in the last quarter. Paradigm Capital Management LLC NV boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Paradigm Capital Management LLC NV now owns 64,922 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $2,644,000 after acquiring an additional 2,697 shares in the last quarter. Profund Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 66,708 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $2,717,000 after acquiring an additional 2,211 shares during the period. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 917,352 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $37,364,000 after purchasing an additional 107,377 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $46.88 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $48.38 and a 200-day moving average of $44.57. The company has a market cap of $195.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.43, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. The company'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. As a group, equities analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 43,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,189,100. The trade was a 16.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total transaction of $9,922,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp restated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Dbs Bank cut Verizon Communications from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.59.

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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