Tema Etfs LLC Takes Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Tema Etfs LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 79,639 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $3,500,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Corundum Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at about $693,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 2.6% during the third quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 26,888 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,182,000 after purchasing an additional 693 shares in the last quarter. Citizens & Northern Corp increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 6.2% during the third quarter. Citizens & Northern Corp now owns 16,640 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $731,000 after buying an additional 976 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 5.8% in the third quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 18,898 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $831,000 after buying an additional 1,039 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Warwick Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the third quarter worth approximately $212,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered Verizon Communications from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.50 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.47.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of VZ stock opened at $40.46 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $40.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.88. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.58 and a 1-year high of $47.35. The company has a market cap of $170.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.02. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 14.43%.The company had revenue of $33.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.19 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 12th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 12th. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 58.97%.

Trending Headlines about Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large call buying — Investors purchased ~276,566 call options on VZ Friday (≈+278% vs. typical volume), signaling short-term bullish bets or hedging ahead of catalysts. This elevated options flow can increase near-term upside trading interest.
• Positive Sentiment: Outpacing the wireless industry — Zacks highlights VZ outperforming peers over the past year thanks to 5G upgrades, network slicing and new partnerships, suggesting operational momentum that could support longer‑term revenue growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Near-term market beat — Zacks also notes VZ outpaced the broader market on Jan. 8, reflecting supportive sentiment from investors reacting to recent operational/news items. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Product/IoT initiatives highlighted — Coverage on Verizon’s event perks and Industrial IoT push points to potential revenue diversification beyond consumer wireless, a positive catalyst if adoption accelerates. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: High‑yield appeal — The Motley Fool recommends VZ as a top high‑yield dividend stock (yield ~7%), which can attract income-focused investors, especially if rate cuts materialize. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro rate narrative — Commentary that the Fed should cut rates this year could be supportive for high‑yield telecoms like VZ if realized, but this is speculative and timing/scale of cuts remain uncertain. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Job‑cut chatter and dividend concerns — Social media summaries report large workforce reductions and debate over dividend sustainability ahead of earnings, raising short‑term sentiment risk and questions about execution and cost structure. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: New 12‑month low flagged — Coverage noting VZ reached a new 12‑month low raises caution for momentum investors and underscores current downside pressure for the stock. Article Title

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.