Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Purchased by Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp lifted its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 37.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 308,239 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 83,601 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $13,547,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VZ. Cadinha & Co. LLC increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2,916.8% in the 2nd quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC now owns 347,716 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $15,046,000 after buying an additional 336,190 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its position in Verizon Communications by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 7,297,469 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $309,551,000 after acquiring an additional 722,559 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 378.7% in the third quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 93,732 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,120,000 after buying an additional 74,151 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.4% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 555,785 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $24,427,000 after acquiring an additional 43,116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 2,762,705 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $121,421,000 after buying an additional 151,100 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on VZ. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.50 to $51.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.43.

Key Stories Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat on EPS and revenue — Verizon reported $1.09 EPS vs. consensus $1.06 and revenue of $36.38B, topping estimates and showing 2% year-over-year revenue growth. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Raised FY?2026 EPS guidance — management set guidance of $4.90–$4.95, above consensus, improving forward earnings visibility and supporting valuation. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Strong subscriber momentum — Verizon logged its highest quarterly wireless net adds in years (notably large postpaid phone adds), a primary driver of the upside in revenue and service growth metrics. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Capital return program — management outlined a large buyback program (cited in call writeups), which supports EPS and signals confidence in cash flow. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity — heavy call buying was reported intraday, consistent with speculative/hedged bullish positioning by some investors. (Options volume report)
• Neutral Sentiment: Operational resilience highlighted — company actions to harden networks for winter storms were noted; supports customer experience but is a longer-term benefit. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive media/analyst writeups emphasize value after the beat, framing VZ as an income + growth story for yield-seeking investors. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Execution and cost risks called out — deeper analysis warns that aggressive subscriber promotions, the Frontier deal and integration/unit economics could pressure margins and near-term earnings visibility. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst target cut — Wells Fargo trimmed its target in a sector reassessment, a reminder that some shops remain cautious on wireless pricing and capital intensity. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Dividend-safety concerns re-surfacing — articles questioning sustainability of the ~7% yield could weigh on long-term income-focused demand if cash flow dynamics shift. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Minor institutional selling — a small manager reduced its position, noted in filings; not a major red flag but adds to mixed signals. Read More.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 11.8%

VZ opened at $44.52 on Monday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.39 and a 1-year high of $47.35. The company has a market cap of $187.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.99, a PEG ratio of 4.15 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company’s 50 day moving average is $40.32 and its 200-day moving average is $41.58.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%. The company’s revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.4%. 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 is presently 58.97%.

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.