Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Sold by Morningstar Investment Management LLC

Morningstar Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 40.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 80,968 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 54,024 shares during the period. Morningstar Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $4,065,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 490.0% in the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 173.0% during the 4th quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quattro Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories 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

Verizon Communications Stock Up 5.7%

VZ stock opened at $46.34 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $193.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.30, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.64. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.68. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $45.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.20.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The company had revenue of $34.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.22 EPS. Verizon Communications’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on VZ. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Freedom Capital upgraded Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $54.50 to $51.50 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.