Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Bought by Capital World Investors

Key Points

• Capital World Investors raised its Verizon stake by 51.1% in Q3, buying 4,905,101 shares to hold 14,512,228 shares (about 0.34% of the company) valued at roughly $637.8 million.
• Company insiders have been net sellers recently — Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares (~$9.92M) and insiders have sold 218,148 shares worth $10.78M over the past 90 days, leaving insiders with about 0.10% ownership.
• Verizon increased its quarterly dividend to $0.7075 (annualized $2.83), implying a yield of about 5.6%, with an ex-dividend date of April 10 and payment on May 1.

Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 51.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 14,512,228 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after buying an additional 4,905,101 shares during the period. Capital World Investors owned about 0.34% of Verizon Communications worth $637,812,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 95.3% during the 3rd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 739.5% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the period. Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Silicon Valley Capital Partners boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 52.4% in the 2nd quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 782 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Scotiabank upgraded VZ to Outperform and raised its price target to $54.50 (from $50.25) after meetings with Verizon management, calling the shares “cheap” at current levels — a direct bullish catalyst for demand and analyst-driven buying. Scotiabank Lifts Verizon to Outperform
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest fell sharply in February (down ~23.5% to ~113.5M shares, ~2.7% of shares short, ~4.3 days to cover). Reduced short exposure lowers the risk of further downward selling pressure and can remove a headwind to share-price appreciation.
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon presented at the Deutsche Bank Media, Internet & Telecom conference; the transcript provides refreshed management commentary and an opportunity for investors to re‑assess guidance and strategy — useful but not an immediate price mover absent new disclosures. Conference Presentation Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple outlets highlight renewed analyst interest in telecom and infrastructure names, keeping VZ on investors’ radars; these pieces support sentiment but are incremental unless followed by more upgrades or volume. Analyst Interest Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry promotions tied to the Samsung Galaxy S26 launch have ramped up offers across carriers; this could pressure near-term device economics or churn but impact on Verizon’s revenue/margins is unclear yet. Promotion Wars Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports that Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse unloaded Verizon shares were published; insider or politically related trades can draw attention but don’t necessarily signal company fundamentals. Insider/Regulatory Report
• Negative Sentiment: Some market coverage noted that VZ stock dipped recently while the broader market rose — a reminder that the name can lag on macro or sector moves and that there are active short-term technical/headline risks. Zacks: Stock Sinks Coverage

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 145,069 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the 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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,189,100. This represents a 16.37% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.5%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $50.68 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $213.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.31. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.39 and a 12 month high of $51.41. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $44.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.6%. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio is 68.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on VZ. 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. William Blair upgraded Verizon Communications to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Scotiabank raised Verizon Communications from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and upped their price target for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research report on Monday. Citigroup increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.28.

Verizon Communications Company 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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