Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Gets Price Target Trim from Morgan Stanley

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) had its price objective lowered by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $52.00 to $50.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the cell phone carrier’s stock. Morgan Stanley‘s target price points to a potential upside of 15.81% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Moffett Nathanson reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on Verizon Communications from $51.50 to $50.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.67.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 3.3%

VZ stock opened at $43.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $47.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.65. Verizon Communications has a fifty-two week low of $38.68 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68. 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 $179.39 billion, a PE ratio of 11.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.26.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.04. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 19.48%. The company had revenue of $34.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.48, for a total transaction of $48,928.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,446,487.68. This represents a 1.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,900 shares of company stock worth $469,073. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gill Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 74.6% in the second quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC now owns 620 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the period. Robinswood Financial LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 37.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 841 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the period. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 32.7% in the 1st quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 888 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Montgomery Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at $47,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.31 per share, above the $1.27 analyst consensus, while net income increased year over year. The company also raised its full-year 2026 outlook for adjusted EPS, postpaid phone additions and free cash flow. Verizon Communications Q3 Earnings Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Wireless momentum was strong: Verizon added 406,000 postpaid phone customers and 137,000 postpaid accounts, its best third-quarter phone-addition performance in five years. Mobility and broadband service revenue rose 2.9% year over year. Verizon Delivers Another Record-Breaking Quarter
• Positive Sentiment: A more-than-$2 billion agreement with Amazon Web Services to expand AI infrastructure and a dark-fiber opportunity support Verizon’s efforts to develop growth beyond traditional wireless services. Verizon Lifts Outlook and Inks Amazon Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon’s CEO said SpaceX could be years away from becoming a meaningful U.S. wireless competitor because it would require substantial ground infrastructure and investment. This may ease immediate competitive concerns but does not eliminate the longer-term threat. Verizon CEO Discusses SpaceX Competition
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue of $34.31 billion rose only 1.5% but missed the $34.77 billion consensus estimate. The revenue miss overshadowed the profit and subscriber beats, raising concerns about Verizon’s limited top-line growth in a mature market. Verizon Stock Falls on Revenue Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Lower phone upgrades and uncertainty surrounding a potential SpaceX wireless network add to investor caution. Several analysts continue to rate VZ “Hold,” citing strong cash flow and dividend support but limited upside from a slow-growth core business. Verizon Improving Profits Can Only Get You So Far

Verizon Communications Company Profile

Verizon Communications Inc is a telecommunications company that provides wireless communications, broadband, and digital connectivity services. Through its consumer business, Verizon offers mobile voice and data plans, smartphones and other connected devices, home internet, fixed wireless access, and fiber-optic broadband services under the Fios brand.

Verizon also serves businesses, government agencies, and other organizations with wireless connectivity, private networks, internet and data services, managed communications, cloud and security solutions, and Internet of Things services.