Short Interest in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Declines By 16.0%

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 95,282,309 shares, a decline of 16.0% from the February 26th total of 113,473,590 shares. Currently, 2.3% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 24,795,109 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verizon Communications

In other news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $428,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,189,100. The trade was a 16.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. This represents a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356 over the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 95.3% during the third quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 490.0% in the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its position in Verizon Communications by 739.5% in the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 599 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holos Integrated Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

VZ stock traded down $0.87 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $49.33. The company had a trading volume of 4,436,369 shares, compared to its average volume of 31,787,467. Verizon Communications has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $208.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $47.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.35.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $36.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications 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 dividend of $0.7075 per share. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.7%. 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. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on VZ. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Scotiabank raised shares of Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a report on Monday, March 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, William Blair upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.56.

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.