Apella Capital LLC Raises Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Apella Capital LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 47.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,295 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 13,917 shares during the period. Apella Capital LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $2,015,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 2,765 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 35,023 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,426,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,305 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the period. Triton Wealth Management PLLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Triton Wealth Management PLLC now owns 9,257 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $377,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 9,788 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE VZ opened at $46.43 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.83. The stock has a market cap of $193.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.24. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The business had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.19 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.59.

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.