Penserra Capital Management LLC Grows Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Penserra Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 14.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 271,584 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 33,751 shares during the period. Penserra Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $11,934,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of VZ. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,504,150,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 1.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 372,787,016 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $16,130,494,000 after purchasing an additional 4,615,075 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 2.1% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 208,213,255 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,009,388,000 after purchasing an additional 4,205,449 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 21.5% in the second quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 21,159,040 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $915,552,000 after purchasing an additional 3,743,892 shares in the last quarter. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth about $113,004,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owned 44,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. The trade was a 17.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 1.6%

NYSE VZ opened at $46.97 on Thursday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $47.55. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.68. 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 stock has a market cap of $198.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.33.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. The firm 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 firm’s revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a $0.7075 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.0%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Williams Trading set a $54.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday. William Blair upgraded Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.02.

Verizon Communications News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and subscriber strength — Verizon posted a fourth‑quarter earnings and revenue beat and reported sizable wireless subscriber additions, which underpins near‑term revenue momentum and investor confidence. InsiderMonkey Q4/Subscriber Adds
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher price targets — multiple firms have raised price targets or ratings (Citigroup to $50 buy, Evercore/Scotiabank, JPMorgan raised) supporting upside expectations and helping buying interest. Citigroup PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder returns and cost actions — management is executing cost savings, pursuing a $25B buyback program and recently increased the quarterly dividend, all of which bolster EPS and free‑cash‑flow outlook for 2026. Seeking Alpha: Momentum & Buyback
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and media coverage parsing valuation — pieces from Zacks and others are discussing whether the Q4 beat and yield justify repositioning into VZ; useful background but not an immediate catalyst. Zacks Trending Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector/flow influence — some of today’s move reflects the S&P 500 Communications Index and sector flows rather than pure company‑specific news. Kalkine Media
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/reputational risk — Senator Maria Cantwell said Verizon (and AT&T) are blocking release of Salt Typhoon security assessment reports and requested CEOs testify before Congress, creating potential regulatory scrutiny and reputational risk. Reuters: Senator on Salt Typhoon
• Negative Sentiment: Legal/competitive escalation — Verizon filed a suit accusing T‑Mobile of false advertising over savings claims; this could intensify competitive spending on promotions and trigger legal costs or a public dispute. Reuters: Verizon sues T‑Mobile
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and margin concerns — an EVP disclosed a sizable share sale and analysts warn that heavy 5G/fiber investment, price‑lock dynamics and margin pressure could limit multiple expansion. SEC Form 4: Russo Sale

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.