Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Stake Boosted by Moors & Cabot Inc.

Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 186,303 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,114 shares during the quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $7,588,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. State Street Corp increased its position in Verizon Communications by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 215,490,064 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,470,788,000 after acquiring an additional 7,276,809 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $15,453,058,000 after buying an additional 5,497,598 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 51.1% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,512,228 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $637,812,000 after acquiring an additional 4,905,101 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at $161,346,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 8,848,766 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $385,983,000 after purchasing an additional 2,965,033 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $428,450.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,189,100. This represents a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon shareholders approved the company’s 2026 long-term incentive plan at the annual meeting, a sign of continued support for management’s compensation and retention framework. Verizon Shareholders Approve 2026 Long-Term Incentive Plan
• Positive Sentiment: Investor articles highlighted Verizon as a sub-$50 cash-flow and dividend-style stock that can still look attractive even with elevated Treasury yields, reinforcing the appeal of its steady earnings and income profile. The Sub-$50 Institutional Cash-Flow Machine That Remains Attractive Despite High Risk Free Yields
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage noting Verizon has been trading in the green for multiple sessions and remains a trending stock suggests improving near-term sentiment around the shares. Verizon trades in green for the seventh session
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst-style articles also pointed to Verizon’s role in the growing 5G and AI connectivity theme, which can support the bull case for longer-term revenue opportunities. AI Can’t Reach the Real World Without These 3 Stocks

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE VZ opened at $48.03 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.39 and a 52-week high of $51.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $200.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.24. The company’s fifty day moving average is $47.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $45.05.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 EPS 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter 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. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on VZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. William Blair upgraded Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Dbs Bank downgraded Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Williams Trading set a $54.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their target price 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.59.

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.