Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Acquired by UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC

Key Points

• UBS Asset Management increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 8.0%, owning nearly 42 million shares worth approximately $1.9 billion following a purchase of over 3 million additional shares.
• Verizon Communications reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.22, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenue up 5.2% year-over-year at $34.5 billion.
• Verizon declared a quarterly dividend of $0.69 per share, up from $0.68, with an ex-dividend date set for October 10th and a dividend yield of 6.4%.

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 8.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 41,993,829 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after buying an additional 3,100,342 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned approximately 1.00% of Verizon Communications worth $1,904,840,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% during the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% during the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $43.32 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.58 and a 12-month high of $47.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market cap of $182.66 billion, a PE ratio of 10.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a 50-day moving average of $43.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.37.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The cell phone carrier reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business had revenue of $34.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. The company's revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.636-4.728 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.4%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 63.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on VZ. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $49.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Arete Research upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.65.

Verizon Communications Profile

Verizon Communications Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and governmental entities worldwide. It operates in two segments, Verizon Consumer Group (Consumer) and Verizon Business Group (Business).

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