UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Has $1.74 Billion Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 14.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,173,226 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,075,794 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.99% of Verizon Communications worth $1,743,274,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC lifted its stake in Verizon Communications by 490.0% during the fourth 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. Robinswood Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quattro Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on VZ. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.84.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

VZ stock opened at $50.10 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $46.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.44. The company has a market cap of $208.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.05, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.25. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $51.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 19.48%. The business had revenue of $34.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.22 EPS. Verizon Communications’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th were paid a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.6%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is 73.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.06, for a total value of $55,066.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 108,766 shares in the company, valued at $5,444,825.96. The trade was a 1.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.