Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 5.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,036,896 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 103,199 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $86,242,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VZ. RKL Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.3% in the first quarter. RKL Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,338 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 2,765 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 32.7% during the 1st quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 888 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 18,421 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $925,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 35,023 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,426,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $49.34 on Friday. 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 fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68. The firm has a market cap of $205.00 billion, a PE ratio of 12.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.25. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $45.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.29.

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

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th were issued a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VZ. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Barclays raised their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.84.

Insider Activity

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the business’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 owned 109,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,348,276.88. The trade was a 0.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.03% 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.