Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. Acquires 55,228 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,712,944 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 55,228 shares during the period. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $69,768,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. North Dallas Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $269,000. Alteri Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC now owns 23,268 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $948,000 after purchasing an additional 2,440 shares in the last quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 10.0% in the 4th quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc now owns 48,775 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,987,000 after purchasing an additional 4,435 shares in the last quarter. Everett Harris & Co. CA lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Everett Harris & Co. CA now owns 559,829 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $22,802,000 after purchasing an additional 7,541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Waddell & Associates LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $288,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Verizon Communications stock opened at $45.84 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $47.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market cap of $191.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.24. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.82 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.19 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Dbs Bank cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.59.

Verizon Communications 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.