Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ Shares Purchased by Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab

Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 19.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 288,504 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,190 shares during the period. Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $12,215,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 during the period. Robinswood Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth about $28,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors raised its position in Verizon Communications by 173.0% during the fourth quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.06, for a total value of $55,066.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 108,766 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,444,825.96. This represents a 1.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $51.50 to $52.50 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Freedom Capital raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. BNP Paribas Exane cut their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Moffett Nathanson decreased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.84.

Verizon Communications Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of VZ stock opened at $50.18 on Thursday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.60. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $45.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $208.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.07, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.25.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share (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 analyst estimates of $35.16 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 19.48%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. Research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were paid a dividend of $0.7075 per share. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.70%.

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.