OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp Acquires 44,500 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 27.6% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 206,018 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 44,500 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,342,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,759,000 after buying an additional 16,704 shares during the last quarter. United Bank raised its position in Verizon Communications by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 7,843 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 806 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC raised its position in Verizon Communications by 312.0% in the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 23,639 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,023,000 after buying an additional 17,901 shares during the last quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 17.2% during the 2nd quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 41,121 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,779,000 after acquiring an additional 6,034 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vivaldi Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 8,993 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $389,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $46.34 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market cap of $193.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.26. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.39 and a 52 week high of $51.68. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.24.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 19.48%. The firm had revenue of $34.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.22 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.70%.

Key Headlines Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon beat Q2 adjusted EPS estimates at $1.30 versus $1.27 expected, helped by record EBITDA margins and stronger cash generation. Verizon earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its full-year 2026 guidance for adjusted EPS, mobility and broadband service revenue, and free cash flow, signaling management confidence in the outlook. Reuters guidance article
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon posted better-than-expected subscriber momentum, including 184,000 postpaid phone additions and more than 550,000 total mobility and broadband net adds, showing the core business is improving. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Free cash flow rose 24.4% and Verizon expanded its full-year buyback target to as much as $4.5 billion, both supportive of shareholder returns. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon also announced a more than $1 billion dark fiber deal with Google for AI data centers, suggesting potential upside from infrastructure demand and additional AI-related contracts. Reuters Google deal article
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue came in below Wall Street expectations and was slightly lower year over year, so top-line pressure is still a concern. Verizon earnings report
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity was unusually heavy, with traders buying more call options than normal, which may reflect speculative bullish positioning rather than fundamental news. GuruFocus earnings call highlights

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VZ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.03.

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.