Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Sells 34,118 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 0.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 12,992,868 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 34,118 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $571,037,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Advantage Trust Co lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 549.5% in the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 591 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 95.3% in the 3rd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. RMG Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 739.5% in the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares during the period. Finally, Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple brokerages lifted price targets and ratings (Citigroup to $50 with a Buy, Evercore to $50 Outperform, Scotiabank to $50.25, Morgan Stanley/JPMorgan to $49, RBC higher) — bolstering near-term upside expectations. Citigroup PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon reported a Q4 beat (EPS $1.09 vs $1.06 est.; revenue ~$36.4B vs ~$36.1B) and posted large wireless subscriber additions — fundamentals that support the rally. InsiderMonkey Q4/Subscriber Adds
• Positive Sentiment: Management actions: a raised quarterly dividend (new yield ~6.4%) plus headlines about cost cuts tied to the Frontier deal and a $25B buyback plan — both increase shareholder return potential. Yahoo Finance: Frontier deal & buyback
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage and analyst-insight pieces are circulating (Globe and Mail, Zacks, AAII) parsing valuation and whether the Q4 beat merits portfolio re‑positioning — useful reading but not an immediate catalyst. Globe and Mail analyst insights
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon’s stock is moving with the S&P 500 Communications Index — some of today’s move reflects sector flows rather than company-specific news. Kalkine Media
• Negative Sentiment: Senator Maria Cantwell said Verizon (and AT&T) are blocking release of key Salt Typhoon security assessment reports and called for CEOs to testify — this raises regulatory and reputational risk that investors will watch closely. Reuters: Senator on Salt Typhoon
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and commentaries flag margin pressure from heavy 5G and fiber investment, price lock dynamics and the potential for customer losses tied to prior price cuts — factors that could cap multiple expansion. Zacks: Margin pressure
• Negative Sentiment: Some market pieces warn Verizon may encounter technical resistance near recent highs and note CEO comments that prior price cuts hurt customer counts — caution for momentum traders. USA Today: Price cuts cost customers

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction of $429,905.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 available at the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. Barclays began coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. William Blair upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.02.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 3.9%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $46.34 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $195.41 billion, a PE ratio of 11.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 0.33. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.39 and a 52-week high of $47.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a $0.7075 dividend. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.15%.

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.