Avanza Fonder AB Purchases 17,495 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Avanza Fonder AB raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 331,962 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,495 shares during the period. Avanza Fonder AB’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $13,521,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 373,904,749 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $16,433,114,000 after buying an additional 1,117,733 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 215,490,064 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $9,470,788,000 after buying an additional 7,276,809 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the second quarter worth approximately $2,504,150,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,265,695 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,989,427,000 after buying an additional 557,576 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Verizon Communications by 4.5% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 28,188,066 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,238,866,000 after acquiring an additional 1,203,445 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the topic of several research reports. Scotiabank raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Evercore increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted 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, February 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $56.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.32.

Trending Headlines about Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade and price-target raise: VZ was lifted by at least one analyst raising its price target to $55 and subsequent coverage noting the stronger outlook, which supports near-term buying. Price Target Raised to $55
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum from earnings, buyback and subscriber gains: Recent commentary highlights Verizon’s strong Q4 (postpaid phone adds, revenue beat), a $25B buyback, improved free cash flow and 5G demand — fundamentals that have driven a YTD rally and support further upside. Verizon Stock Is Soaring in 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Yield and defensive appeal: Multiple outlets are listing VZ as a high‑yield, low‑volatility name (5%+ yield, long dividend growth streak), making it attractive in a risk‑off market and drawing institutional inflows. This income story is supporting multiple buyers. 5 High-Yield Stocks
• Positive Sentiment: Macro backdrop favors high-yield names: Commentary that interest‑rate cut hopes may be delayed has pushed investors toward reliable dividend payers; that dynamic benefits Verizon relative to growth names. Interest Rate Cut Hopes Are Over
• Neutral Sentiment: Customer engagement promotion: Verizon announced multiple FIFA World Cup 2026 ticket sweepstakes and promotions to boost customer engagement and brand loyalty; positive PR but limited immediate financial impact. FIFA World Cup Promotions
• Negative Sentiment: Business segment pressure: Coverage notes that Business revenues have dipped amid rising costs and competition, which could weigh on margins if enterprise 5G and solutions don’t scale fast enough — a watchpoint for investors despite longer-term 5G opportunity. Business Segment Outlook

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total transaction of $9,922,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. The trade was a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE VZ opened at $50.65 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $213.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.30. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.67. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.07. 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 posted 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 analysts’ expectations of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 12.43%.The business’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. 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 business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders 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 5.6%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.15%.

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.