Crescent Grove Advisors LLC Sells 48,715 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Crescent Grove Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 86.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 7,420 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 48,715 shares during the quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $302,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $15,453,058,000 after purchasing an additional 5,497,598 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 215,490,064 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,470,788,000 after buying an additional 7,276,809 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 0.9% in 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. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,357,158,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,265,695 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,989,427,000 after purchasing an additional 557,576 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Dbs Bank cut Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 3.8%

VZ stock opened at $44.87 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $187.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.94, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.39 and a twelve month high of $51.68. The company’s 50 day moving average is $47.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $45.27.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.3%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.02%.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon declared its regular quarterly dividend of $0.7075 per share, unchanged from the prior quarter, which reinforces the company’s appeal to income-focused investors. Verizon declares quarterly dividend on June 4, 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon reported the results of its 2026 annual shareholder meeting, where shareholders elected all nine director nominees. This is routine governance news and does not appear to materially change the investment outlook. Verizon Communications (VZ) Announced Results for Annual 2026 Shareholder Meeting
• Negative Sentiment: The U.S. Supreme Court backed the FCC’s fine-collection process in a case involving Verizon and AT&T, removing a legal challenge that wireless carriers had hoped might limit regulatory penalties. Investors may view this as a modest negative for carrier risk exposure. US Supreme Court backs FCC in clash with wireless carriers over fines
• Negative Sentiment: Recent market coverage also highlighted Verizon’s weaker trading session versus the broader market, and another report noted operational friction from a strict in-store policy that could frustrate customers. Together, these items point to short-term sentiment pressure on the stock. Why Verizon Communications (VZ) Dipped More Than Broader Market Today

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.