Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Increases Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its stake in Verizon by 2.7% to 3,479,166 shares after buying 92,564 shares in Q4, a holding worth about $141.57 million (≈0.08% of the company).
• Verizon increased its quarterly dividend to $0.7075 ($2.83 annualized), a ~6.1% yield, with an ex-dividend date of April 10 and payment on May 1; the payout ratio is about 69.9%.
• Insiders have been net sellers: Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares (~$9.92M) and insiders sold 218,148 shares (~$10.78M) in the past 90 days, leaving insiders with roughly 0.10% ownership.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lifted its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,479,166 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 92,564 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned about 0.08% of Verizon Communications worth $141,574,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 373,904,749 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $16,433,114,000 after acquiring an additional 1,117,733 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,265,695 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,989,427,000 after acquiring an additional 557,576 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.5% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 28,188,066 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $1,238,866,000 after acquiring an additional 1,203,445 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.9% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 22,592,460 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $992,939,000 after acquiring an additional 646,537 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the director owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at $7,196,873.09. This trade represents a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction of $429,905.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 44,045 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,976,739.60. This trade represents a 17.86% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356 over the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $46.31 on Wednesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.39 and a 52 week high of $51.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $49.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $193.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The business had revenue of $36.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. Verizon Communications's quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.7075 per share. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. Williams Trading set a $54.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $49.00 target price for the company. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $56.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Two 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.56.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding VZ? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.