Verizon Communications (VZ) Competitors

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) and AT&T (NYSE:T) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, media sentiment, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, community ranking and risk.

Is VZ or T a better dividend stock?

Verizon Communications pays an annual dividend of $2.66 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.1%. AT&T pays an annual dividend of $1.11 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.9%. Verizon Communications pays out 53.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. AT&T pays out -72.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Is VZ or T more profitable?

Verizon Communications has a net margin of 15.58% compared to AT&T's net margin of -9.29%. Verizon Communications' return on equity of 21.26% beat AT&T's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Verizon Communications	15.58%	21.26%	5.34%
AT&T	-9.29%	16.26%	4.51%

Which has more risk & volatility, VZ or T?

Verizon Communications has a beta of 0.4, indicating that its share price is 60% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, AT&T has a beta of 0.6, indicating that its share price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do institutionals & insiders hold more shares of VZ or T?

61.1% of Verizon Communications shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 53.7% of AT&T shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of Verizon Communications shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of AT&T shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer VZ or T?

AT&T received 312 more outperform votes than Verizon Communications when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 67.97% of users gave AT&T an outperform vote while only 59.03% of users gave Verizon Communications an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Verizon Communications	Outperform Votes 1095 59.03%	Underperform Votes 760 40.97%
AT&T	Outperform Votes 1407 67.97%	Underperform Votes 663 32.03%

Which has stronger valuation & earnings, VZ or T?

Verizon Communications has higher revenue and earnings than AT&T. AT&T is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Verizon Communications, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Verizon Communications	$136.84B	1.15	$21.26B	$4.96	7.53
AT&T	$120.74B	0.95	-$7.86B	-$1.54	-10.47

Do analysts prefer VZ or T?

Verizon Communications presently has a consensus price target of $41.50, indicating a potential upside of 11.32%. AT&T has a consensus price target of $20.90, indicating a potential upside of 28.93%. Given AT&T's higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe AT&T is more favorable than Verizon Communications.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Verizon Communications	0 Sell rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.58
AT&T	0 Sell rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	5 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.58

Does the media favor VZ or T?

In the previous week, AT&T had 6 more articles in the media than Verizon Communications. MarketBeat recorded 23 mentions for AT&T and 17 mentions for Verizon Communications. Verizon Communications' average media sentiment score of 1.22 beat AT&T's score of 0.36 indicating that Verizon Communications is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Verizon Communications	12 Very Positive mention(s)	4 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
AT&T	9 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	11 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Summary

Verizon Communications beats AT&T on 12 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.