Ascentis Independent Advisors Has $4.59 Million Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Ascentis Independent Advisors raised its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 101.2% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 91,372 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 45,962 shares during the period. Ascentis Independent Advisors’ holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,587,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $15,453,058,000 after acquiring an additional 5,497,598 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 222,951,399 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $9,080,810,000 after acquiring an additional 7,461,335 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 116,570,816 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,747,930,000 after purchasing an additional 5,851,715 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 102,632,509 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,168,080,000 after purchasing an additional 867,694 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at $2,357,158,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $42.57 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $177.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $46.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.95. 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 results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.6%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 69.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on VZ shares. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $56.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. One investment 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 data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.59.

More Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to frame Verizon as an attractive value stock, with Zacks citing favorable style-score characteristics that may appeal to value-focused investors. Here’s Why Verizon Communications (VZ) is a Strong Value Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon’s dividend profile is still a key support for the shares, with comparisons to AT&T emphasizing Verizon’s long record of dividend increases and its appeal to income investors. Better High-Yield Dividend Stock: Verizon or AT&T?
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon and BT Group announced a $4 billion international enterprise joint venture, which could expand Verizon’s global business services reach and improve growth prospects. Is Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) Stock Positioned for Growth After $4B International Enterprise Partnership?
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon is getting more trading attention from retail investors, which may reflect renewed interest but does not by itself change the company’s fundamentals. Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street expects Verizon’s upcoming quarterly earnings to show modest profit growth, making the next report an important catalyst but not a clear surprise yet. What to Expect From Verizon Communications’ Next Quarterly Earnings Report
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage about Starlink’s push into mobile service raises longer-term competitive pressure on Verizon and other wireless carriers, even though major infrastructure hurdles remain. Starlink Dominates Internet From Space. Can It Disrupt AT&T and Verizon on the Ground?

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.