Gabelli Funds LLC Sells 11,700 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 416,200 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 11,700 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $16,952,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $15,453,058,000 after acquiring an additional 5,497,598 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 215,490,064 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,470,788,000 after acquiring an additional 7,276,809 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 45,265,695 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,989,427,000 after acquiring an additional 557,576 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 28,188,066 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,238,866,000 after acquiring an additional 1,203,445 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Verizon Communications by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 22,592,460 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $992,939,000 after acquiring an additional 646,537 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $428,450.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at $2,189,100. The trade was a 16.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total transaction of $9,922,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. This trade represents a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Verizon Communications stock opened at $46.88 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $48.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $44.57. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.39 and a twelve month high of $51.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The company has a market cap of $195.74 billion, a PE ratio of 11.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.24.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.19 EPS. The business’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 research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on VZ shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target 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, William Blair upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. One research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.