Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC Has $1.88 Million Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 657.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 46,069 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 39,986 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,876,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 490.0% in the fourth quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VZ has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Scotiabank raised Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Dbs Bank downgraded Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.59.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the company’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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at $2,189,100. This represents a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

NYSE:VZ opened at $47.84 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $199.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $47.93 and its 200-day moving average is $45.07. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.39 and a 1-year high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The business had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.19 earnings per share. The firm’s 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. Equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 earnings per share for the current year.

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.