Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Raises Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Key Points

• Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co increased its stake in Verizon by 7.6%, buying 52,300 shares to hold 742,109 shares worth about $30.23 million at quarter-end.
• Verizon beat Q1 EPS estimates ($1.28 vs. $1.21) and set FY 2026 guidance of roughly 4.950–4.990 EPS, while analysts' consensus rates the stock a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $50.59.
• Significant insider selling occurred recently—SVP Mary‑Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares and director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares—leaving insiders with only about 0.03% ownership.

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 7.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 742,109 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after purchasing an additional 52,300 shares during the period. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $30,226,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,305 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. now owns 30,400 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,315,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 5,035 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 26.2% during the 3rd quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC now owns 1,233 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Western Financial Corp CA lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Western Financial Corp CA now owns 18,522 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $814,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on VZ. Barclays increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Williams Trading set a $54.00 target price on Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Dbs Bank lowered Verizon Communications from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.59.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,189,100. This trade represents a 16.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction, the director owned 145,069 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $48.17 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $48.94 and a 200 day moving average of $44.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.24. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.39 and a 1 year high of $51.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.61.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The company's revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.95 earnings per share for the current year.

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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