Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Purchased by SJS Investment Consulting Inc.

SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 1,156.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 15,193 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 13,984 shares during the period. SJS Investment Consulting Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $619,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Apella Capital LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 29,378 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,197,000 after purchasing an additional 2,673 shares in the last quarter. StrongBox Wealth LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. StrongBox Wealth LLC now owns 6,345 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 61,636 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $2,510,000 after acquiring an additional 1,864 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 27,409 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,116,000 after acquiring an additional 9,251 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 128,856 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $5,248,000 after acquiring an additional 2,414 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ stock opened at $49.10 on Tuesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $207.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $51.68. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $48.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.51.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted 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. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 12.43%.The business had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a $0.7075 dividend. This is a boost from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.8%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, January 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Williams Trading set a $54.00 price target on Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.56.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $428,450.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,189,100. This represents a 16.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total value of $9,922,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 218,148 shares of company stock valued at $10,780,356. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.