Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Sold by Epoch Investment Partners Inc.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 0.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,104,651 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 16,153 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned 0.05% of Verizon Communications worth $105,653,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC increased its position in Verizon Communications by 490.0% during the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors lifted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 173.0% in the 4th quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quattro Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon beat Q2 adjusted EPS estimates at $1.30 versus $1.27 expected, helped by record EBITDA margins and stronger cash generation. Verizon earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its full-year 2026 guidance for adjusted EPS, mobility and broadband service revenue, and free cash flow, signaling management confidence in the outlook. Reuters guidance article
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon posted better-than-expected subscriber momentum, including 184,000 postpaid phone additions and more than 550,000 total mobility and broadband net adds, showing the core business is improving. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Free cash flow rose 24.4% and Verizon expanded its full-year buyback target to as much as $4.5 billion, both supportive of shareholder returns. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon also announced a more than $1 billion dark fiber deal with Google for AI data centers, suggesting potential upside from infrastructure demand and additional AI-related contracts. Reuters Google deal article
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue came in below Wall Street expectations and was slightly lower year over year, so top-line pressure is still a concern. Verizon earnings report
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity was unusually heavy, with traders buying more call options than normal, which may reflect speculative bullish positioning rather than fundamental news. GuruFocus earnings call highlights

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VZ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Friday, May 29th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on Verizon Communications from $54.50 to $51.50 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.03.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $46.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.64. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.39 and a 1 year high of $51.68. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $46.20. The firm has a market cap of $193.47 billion, a PE ratio of 11.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.26.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $34.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.16 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.1%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.02%.

Verizon Communications 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.