Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Shares Down 3.6% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Shares fell 3.6% intraday to about $46.06 on Friday with trading volume roughly 20% below average, trimming recent gains despite a three‑month rally.
• Positive catalysts include heavy bullish options flow (~325,956 calls), multiple analyst upgrades/raised price targets, and a dividend increase to $0.7075 quarterly (about a 6.1% yield) alongside FY‑2026 EPS guidance of 4.90–4.95.
• Near‑term risks: a DBS downgrade and lower target, ongoing proxy/governance friction with activists, and notable insider selling (218,148 shares ~ $10.8M last quarter) that could pressure sentiment.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report)'s stock price fell 3.6% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $45.95 and last traded at $46.0550. 25,182,258 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 20% from the average session volume of 31,580,428 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.78.

More Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Large bullish options flow — investors bought ~325,956 call options on Thursday (roughly +300% vs. normal), indicating strong short‑term bullish interest that can amplify upward moves.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst optimism from Erste Group highlights upside to near‑term earnings expectations, reinforcing buy‑side confidence. Erste Group Bank Issues Optimistic Forecast for VZ Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: High‑profile endorsements and coverage (e.g., Jim Cramer) are framing Verizon as improving under new leadership — supportive for sentiment and inflows. Jim Cramer Says “Verizon’s Actually Got Some Game Here”
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend appeal: coverage noting Verizon among high‑yield, dividend‑raising names supports interest from income investors. These Companies Pay 5% Dividend Yields, and They’re Hiking Them Too
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum narrative: analysts note a ~20% three‑month rally driven by fiber strategy, the Frontier deal and bundling — underpins investor interest. Verizon Shares Rise 20.6% in Three Months: How to Play the Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst view: a recent piece shows fair‑value nudging up as analysts balance subscriber/cost‑cut progress against disclosure concerns — a nuanced story for long‑term valuation tracking. How Verizon (VZ) Story Is Shifting As Cost Cuts Progress And Transparency Concerns Grow
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation/entry debate: articles assessing whether recent pullbacks create an opportunity signal a split between value and momentum investors. Is Verizon Communications (VZ) Offering An Opportunity After Recent Share Price Pullback?
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage highlighting Verizon as a cash‑generating name underscores balance‑sheet strength but is not new catalyst on its own. These 3 Companies Are Cash-Generating Machines
• Negative Sentiment: DBS Bank downgraded VZ to Hold (lowered target to $52), trimming bullish analyst support and possibly pressuring near‑term flows. DBS Bank Downgrades Verizon (VZ) to Hold Despite Strong Stock Performance
• Negative Sentiment: Proxy and governance friction: Verizon is urging shareholders to reject activist proposals on CEO/chair split, ESG‑pay links and climate oversight — escalating investor governance risk that can weigh on sentiment before the May meeting. How Investors May Respond To Verizon (VZ) Resisting Activist Push On Governance, ESG Pay, And Climate Oversight

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on VZ. Evercore boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Williams Trading set a $54.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $50.56.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $49.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.37, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.29.

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

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.7075 per share. This is a boost from Verizon Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications's payout ratio is currently 68.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 44,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. This trade represents a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total transaction of $9,922,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 145,069 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,196,873.09. This trade represents a 57.96% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,759,000 after acquiring an additional 16,704 shares during the period. United Bank boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 11.5% in the second quarter. United Bank now owns 7,843 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 806 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 312.0% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 23,639 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $1,023,000 after acquiring an additional 17,901 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.9% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 612,966 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $26,523,000 after acquiring an additional 22,733 shares during the period. Finally, Dearborn Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the second quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 751,103 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $32,500,000 after acquiring an additional 9,072 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

About Verizon Communications

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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