Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Sold by Novare Capital Management LLC

Novare Capital Management LLC cut its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 41.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 256,858 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 181,722 shares during the quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $12,894,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Avanza Fonder AB increased its position in Verizon Communications by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 331,962 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $13,521,000 after purchasing an additional 17,495 shares during the last quarter. Econ Financial Services Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. Econ Financial Services Corp now owns 78,172 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $3,184,000 after purchasing an additional 14,862 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 41.0% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 2,197,366 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $89,499,000 after purchasing an additional 639,380 shares during the last quarter. Clarity Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 697.0% during the 4th quarter. Clarity Financial LLC now owns 471,127 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $19,189,000 after buying an additional 412,018 shares during the period. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,382,975 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $97,059,000 after buying an additional 316,854 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VZ. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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. Barclays raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $56.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, March 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $45.37 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $46.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.72. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $189.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.07, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.24.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The firm had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS. The firm’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. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.97 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, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.2%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.02%.

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.