Pacer Advisors Inc. Boosts Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 10,297,784 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 307,658 shares during the period. Verizon Communications accounts for approximately 1.1% of Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $419,429,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC increased its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total value of $9,922,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 145,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% 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, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were 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 owned 43,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,189,100. This trade represents a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VZ has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Verizon Communications from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, William Blair upgraded Verizon Communications to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.59.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $47.19 on Thursday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.39 and a twelve month high of $51.68. 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 company has a market capitalization of $197.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.24. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $44.41.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.19 EPS. The business’s quarterly 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. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon’s year-to-date gains have been supported by improving wireless subscriber trends, lower customer churn, and continued fiber expansion, which are helping the company’s growth outlook. Verizon Shares Rise 17.7% YTD: How Should You Play the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Verizon also held a presentation at MoffettNathanson’s Media, Internet & Communications Conference, which may have reinforced investor focus on its strategy and outlook, but there was no clear new catalyst in the transcript headline alone. Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) Presents at MoffettNathanson’s Media, Internet & Communications Conference Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: One article warned that Verizon’s latest phone plan changes could drive away consumers, adding to worries about customer retention after the company reportedly lost more than 2.25 million customers over the past three years. Verizon’s latest phone plan change may drive away consumers
• Negative Sentiment: Verizon’s debt exchange and tender offers may improve its capital structure over time, but they also highlight the company’s large debt load and ongoing refinancing/integration risk following major acquisition activity. Verizon Debt Moves Reshape Capital Structure And Investor Risk Profile

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.