Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Sells 19,543 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lowered its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,936,123 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 19,543 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $78,858,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Corps Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 79.5% in the 4th quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC now owns 24,707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,006,000 after acquiring an additional 10,940 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 1,829,935 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $74,533,000 after acquiring an additional 207,198 shares in the last quarter. First National Bank of Omaha lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. First National Bank of Omaha now owns 69,500 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,830,000 after acquiring an additional 6,254 shares in the last quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 52.4% in the 4th quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,315 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 2,515 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alchemi Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter worth $646,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary remain constructive on Verizon’s valuation, with several notes calling it inexpensive relative to its cash flow, earnings power, and dividend profile. Verizon: Steady, Cheap, And Still Standing
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon highlighted new AI-powered disaster-response tools, including “Digital Twin” network modeling, satellite connectivity, and mobile 5G assets, which could support network resilience and reinforce its infrastructure advantage. Verizon’s AI Disaster Tools Highlight Network Resilience And Valuation Gap
• Positive Sentiment: Investor sentiment has also been helped by upbeat pieces describing Verizon as a defensive stock with income potential, including mentions of its raised guidance, postpaid subscriber momentum, and fiber expansion after the Frontier deal. Verizon: A Unique Opportunity In An Expensive Market
• Neutral Sentiment: An insider sold about 80% of her shares in a roughly $3 million transaction, which can draw attention but does not necessarily signal a change in Verizon’s business outlook. 1 Verizon Insider Sells 80% of Her Stock in $3 Million Deal. For Everyone Else, VZ Is a Good Buy Now.
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group slightly trimmed its FY2027 earnings estimate for Verizon, but the change was minimal and the firm kept a Hold rating. Verizon Communications Inc. research note
• Neutral Sentiment: Some recent market updates noted Verizon outperforming a weaker broader market session, reinforcing the stock’s defensive character rather than pointing to a major company-specific catalyst. Verizon Communications (VZ) Rises As Market Takes a Dip: Key Facts

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on VZ shares. Scotiabank raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $56.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $48.10 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $47.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.47. The company has a market cap of $200.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.73, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $51.68.

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

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.9%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.02%.

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.