Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ is Gould Capital LLC’s 10th Largest Position

Gould Capital LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 16.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 93,443 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 13,355 shares during the quarter. Verizon Communications comprises 2.2% of Gould Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Gould Capital LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,956,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Robinswood Financial LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC increased 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 purchasing an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 173.0% during the fourth quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VZ opened at $50.19 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $45.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.35. The stock has a market cap of $208.52 billion, a PE ratio of 13.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.60. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 11.64%.The company had revenue of $34.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were paid a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is presently 73.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $51.50 to $52.50 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Freedom Capital raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price 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. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.68, for a total value of $53,548.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 109,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,348,276.88. This represents a 0.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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.