Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Bought by National Pension Service

National Pension Service grew its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 9,878,922 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 309,762 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned about 0.23% of Verizon Communications worth $434,179,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VZ. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.3% in 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 buying an additional 4,615,075 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 208,213,255 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,009,388,000 after acquiring an additional 4,205,449 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 100,326,792 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,322,700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,101,504 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth $2,504,150,000. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in Verizon Communications by 21.5% during 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 acquiring an additional 3,743,892 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $44.52 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.39 and a 1 year high of $47.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $187.70 billion, a PE ratio of 9.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.34. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.57.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 14.43%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 12th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 12th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 58.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on VZ. BNP Paribas Exane cut shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $41.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.43.

Key Headlines Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat on EPS and revenue — Verizon reported $1.09 EPS vs. consensus $1.06 and revenue of $36.38B, topping estimates and showing 2% year-over-year revenue growth. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Raised FY‑2026 EPS guidance — management set guidance of $4.90–$4.95, above consensus, improving forward earnings visibility and supporting valuation. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Strong subscriber momentum — Verizon logged its highest quarterly wireless net adds in years (notably large postpaid phone adds), a primary driver of the upside in revenue and service growth metrics. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Capital return program — management outlined a large buyback program (cited in call writeups), which supports EPS and signals confidence in cash flow. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity — heavy call buying was reported intraday, consistent with speculative/hedged bullish positioning by some investors. (Options volume report)
• Neutral Sentiment: Operational resilience highlighted — company actions to harden networks for winter storms were noted; supports customer experience but is a longer-term benefit. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive media/analyst writeups emphasize value after the beat, framing VZ as an income + growth story for yield-seeking investors. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Execution and cost risks called out — deeper analysis warns that aggressive subscriber promotions, the Frontier deal and integration/unit economics could pressure margins and near-term earnings visibility. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst target cut — Wells Fargo trimmed its target in a sector reassessment, a reminder that some shops remain cautious on wireless pricing and capital intensity. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Dividend-safety concerns re-surfacing — articles questioning sustainability of the ~7% yield could weigh on long-term income-focused demand if cash flow dynamics shift. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Minor institutional selling — a small manager reduced its position, noted in filings; not a major red flag but adds to mixed signals. Read More.

Verizon Communications 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.