First Nebraska Trust Co Takes Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

First Nebraska Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 19,321 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $970,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VZ. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 490.0% during the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 539 shares during the period. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors boosted its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 173.0% during the 4th quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quattro Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ opened at $46.88 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.68. The company has a market cap of $195.77 billion, a PE ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.26. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $45.32 and a 200-day moving average of $46.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.57.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted 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. The business had revenue of $34.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.16 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 11.64%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.22 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued 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 6.0%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 73.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $51.50 to $52.50 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Barclays increased their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Dbs Bank lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.84.

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.