NCM Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

NCM Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 80.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 33,230 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,838 shares during the period. NCM Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,353,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,759,000 after acquiring an additional 16,704 shares in the last quarter. United Bank boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 11.5% during the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 7,843 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 806 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 312.0% during the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 23,639 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,023,000 after acquiring an additional 17,901 shares during the last quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 17.2% in the 2nd quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 41,121 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,779,000 after purchasing an additional 6,034 shares during the period. Finally, Vivaldi Capital Management LP increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 8,993 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $389,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $45.44 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $46.92 and a 200 day moving average of $45.66. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.39 and a 52 week high of $51.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $189.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.08, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $34.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.82 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.19 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 69.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on VZ shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.59.

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.