A number of stock research firms have changed their ratings and price targets for Verizon (NYSE: VZ) during the last seven days:

  • Verizon had its “outperform” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Wells Fargo & Co..
  • Verizon had its “neutral” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Nomura. They now have a $45.00 price target on the stock.
  • Verizon was downgraded by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating.
  • Verizon ‘s EPS estimates were cut by analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein. They now have an “underweight” rating and a $33.00 price target on the stock.
  • Verizon had its price target lowered by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus to $48.00. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock. They wrote, “: We are downgrading shares of Verizon to Hold, from Buy, as a result of valuation. While VZ shares have underperformed the S&P 500 year-to-date (+13.6% vs. +16.1% for S&P 500), the shares are currently trading at ~6.8x our 2013 estimate for EBITDA and a P/E ratio of 16.4x our 2013 EPS estimate. …. We are lowering our estimates for both 3Q12 and 4Q12 because of what we expect will be a successful launch of the iPhone 5. We had initially modeled an early 4Q12 release of the iPhone 5; however, after Wednesday’s announcement of a 9/21 launch, we have shifted a portion of the iPhone 5 sales into 3Q12 and increased our estimate for total iPhone 5 sales.”
  • Verizon had its price target raised by analysts at Piper Jaffray from $42.00 to $44.00. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock. They wrote, “We are updating our earnings model and estimates to reflect a September 21 iPhone launch, as was announced earlier this week by Apple. We had previously modeled a 4Q launch, mirroring the iPhone 4S launch in 2011. Bringing the peak week of iPhone sales into the third quarter results in a higher upgrade rate, increased subsidy expense, and lower margins than previously forecast.”
  • Verizon had its “sector perform” rating reaffirmed by analysts at RBC Capital. They now have a $46.00 price target on the stock.

Verizon opened at 45.27 on Thursday. Verizon has a 1-year low of $35.06 and a 1-year high of $46.41. The company has a market cap of $129.0 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.51.

Verizon Communications Inc. (Verizon) is a holding company. The Company is a provider of communications, information and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses and governmental agencies.