Anchor Investment Management LLC Has $6.18 Million Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 13.1% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 123,106 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 14,222 shares during the quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $6,180,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 490.0% during the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Lam Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 173.0% during the fourth quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Freedom Capital upgraded Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.28.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:VZ traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $42.14. The stock had a trading volume of 27,697,528 shares, compared to its average volume of 33,171,120. The business’s 50 day moving average is $46.10 and its 200-day moving average is $45.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.64. The company has a market cap of $175.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.26. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year 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 for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The company had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.82 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.7%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 69.02%.

Verizon Communications News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon is being highlighted as a potentially attractive dividend stock, with Barron’s saying now may be a good time to buy income-oriented names like VZ as yields look more compelling. Why Verizon, Clorox and More Dividend Stocks Are Flashing a Buy Signal
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon won a new automotive connectivity contract through its KDDI partnership, becoming the U.S. connectivity provider for newly manufactured BMW Group vehicles, which could support growth in its enterprise and IoT business. Verizon named U.S. connectivity provider for newly manufactured BMW Group vehicles through KDDI partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts also flagged Verizon as a telecom name worth owning, noting its fiber and wireless expansion strategy and suggesting it may have a good setup for its next earnings report. T or VZ: Which Telecom Stock Deserves a Place in Your Portfolio?
• Positive Sentiment: Another recent report said Verizon has a strong earnings surprise history and could beat estimates again, which tends to support investor confidence ahead of results. Will Verizon (VZ) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman Sachs won asset-management mandates tied to Verizon’s retirement assets, but this is mainly a financial-services arrangement rather than an operational development for Verizon. Goldman Sachs wins $70 billion in asset management deals with Verizon, Lockheed Martin
• Neutral Sentiment: Some broader commentary on enterprise internet reliability and telecom competition, including Starlink-related pressure, may add noise to the sector outlook, but it is not a direct negative catalyst for Verizon itself. Verizon (NYSE:VZ) Dow Exit Deepens Starlink Market Pressure

About Verizon Communications

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.