Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Price Target Raised to $48.00

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) had its price objective lifted by Royal Bank Of Canada from $44.00 to $48.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sector perform rating on the cell phone carrier’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on VZ. Barclays assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 target price on the stock. Williams Trading set a $54.00 price objective on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.02.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Verizon Communications stock opened at $47.13 on Tuesday. Verizon Communications has a 52 week low of $38.39 and a 52 week high of $47.58. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $40.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.72. The stock has a market cap of $198.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $36.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 12.43%.Verizon Communications’s revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.10 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Verizon Communications will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.0%. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,976,739.60. This trade represents a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $15,453,058,000 after buying an additional 5,497,598 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Verizon Communications by 1.1% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 100,326,792 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,322,700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,101,504 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,504,150,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake 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 worth $1,989,427,000 after purchasing an additional 557,576 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Verizon Communications

Here are the key news stories impacting Verizon Communications this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Broad analyst upgrades and price-target raises this week have pushed bullish flows and sentiment, supporting upside momentum. Shares Up After Analyst Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamentals and capital returns look supportive: Verizon reported a Q4 beat, raised its dividend, and is executing a $25B buyback program and cost cuts — factors analysts cite for higher EPS and free-cash-flow trajectory. Seeking Alpha: Strong Momentum for 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation and whether recent gains fully reflect future cash-flow strength are under debate — some coverage suggests upside remains, others urge caution on multiple expansion. Yahoo Finance: Valuation Discussion
• Neutral Sentiment: Third-party/adjacent tech developments (AST SpaceMobile) are being watched for potential partnership or spectrum opportunities, but they’re not an immediate driver of Verizon’s core results. AST SpaceMobile Launch Targets
• Neutral Sentiment: An executive insider (EVP Joseph Russo) disclosed a sale of ~9,579 shares; notable but not uncommon and often judged case-by-case by investors. SEC Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: Leadership turnover: Verizon’s consumer unit CEO Sowmyanarayan Sampath is stepping down as new CEO Dan Schulman pursues a turnaround — management changes can create short‑term execution risk during a transition. Reuters: Consumer Division Head Departing WSJ: CEO Step-Down
• Negative Sentiment: Legal/competitive friction: Verizon sued T‑Mobile alleging false advertising around savings claims — could be a distraction and bring litigation costs or escalate competitive responses. Reuters: Verizon Sues T-Mobile
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/reputational risk: reporting and political scrutiny (e.g., calls to release Salt Typhoon security assessments) could create additional oversight or disclosure requirements investors will monitor. Reuters: Senator on Security Assessment

About Verizon Communications

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.