Rep. Julie Johnson Sells Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Shares

Representative Julie Johnson (D-Texas) recently sold shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ). In a filing disclosed on January 15th, the Representative disclosed that they had sold between $1,001 and $15,000 in Verizon Communications stock on December 18th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “CHASE BROKERAGE ACCOUNT (3935)” account.

Representative Julie Johnson also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:TXN) on 12/18/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) on 12/18/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) on 12/18/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) on 12/18/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Dover (NYSE:DOV) on 12/18/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) on 12/18/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) on 12/18/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) on 12/18/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Walmart (NASDAQ:WMT) on 12/18/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) on 12/18/2025.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ traded down $0.41 on Friday, hitting $38.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 38,673,909 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,919,562. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.35 and a 12 month high of $47.35. The firm has a market cap of $164.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $40.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.75.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.02. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.31% and a net margin of 14.43%.The firm had revenue of $33.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.19 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, January 12th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 12th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.1%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.97%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Marino Stram & Associates LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC now owns 61,102 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $2,489,000 after purchasing an additional 2,872 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 167,308 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $6,814,000 after purchasing an additional 2,202 shares during the last quarter. Melfa Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $212,000. West Branch Capital LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 49.9% during the 4th quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 2,186 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 728 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC now owns 11,620 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $473,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on VZ. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.50 to $51.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.25.

Key Headlines Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Regulatory approvals complete for Frontier acquisition — Verizon expects the transaction to close Jan. 20, bringing roughly 30 million fiber passings and enabling cross‑selling of fiber and 5G services, which could materially expand growth runway and ARPU over time. GlobeNewswire: Approvals to Complete Transaction
• Neutral Sentiment: AST SpaceMobile wins Pentagon contract — headlines lifted ASTS shares and remind investors Verizon has partnerships with LEO satellite providers, which could support future wholesale or coverage initiatives, but the news is primarily a catalyst for ASTS rather than VZ. MarketBeat: Pentagon Deal Sends AST SpaceMobile Soaring
• Negative Sentiment: Widespread outage and $20 customer credits — a multi‑hour nationwide outage tied to a software issue triggered customer complaints and scrutiny; Verizon is offering a $20 redeemable credit to affected users, which raises short‑term costs and reputational risk and has prompted calls for mandatory refunds. This outage is the principal near‑term negative driving sentiment. Investopedia: Why Verizon Customers Are Getting $20 Payouts
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst price‑target cut — Sanford C. Bernstein trimmed its VZ target from $46 to $44 and moved to Market Perform, signaling more cautious near‑term expectations; the change tempers upside in the short term. TickerReport / Benzinga: Analyst Price Target Cut

About Representative Johnson

Julie Johnson (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Texas’ 32nd Congressional District. She assumed office on January 3, 2025. Her current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Johnson (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Texas’ 32nd Congressional District. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Julie Johnson earned a B.A. in history and government from the University of Texas at Austin in 1987 and a J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center in 1991. Johnson’s career experience includes working as an attorney.

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.