Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Has $16.55 Million Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB trimmed its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 376,660 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 38,804 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $16,554,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TruNorth Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 95.3% during the 3rd quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 739.5% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares during the period. Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Silicon Valley Capital Partners grew its position in Verizon Communications by 52.4% during the second quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 782 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $428,450.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at $2,189,100. This trade represents a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. This represents a 17.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 0.9%

Verizon Communications stock opened at $50.52 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.39 and a 1-year high of $51.67. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.90. The company has a market capitalization of $213.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.31.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $36.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. William Blair upgraded Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Barclays assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Scotiabank raised Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.03.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

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.