Uhlmann Price Securities LLC Invests $837,000 in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Uhlmann Price Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 16,465 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock, valued at approximately $837,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Genesis Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Verizon Communications in the 1st quarter worth $296,000. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 44.5% during the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 31,987 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,606,000 after purchasing an additional 9,850 shares in the last quarter. Westmount Partners LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the first quarter. Westmount Partners LLC now owns 7,432 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the period. Pullen Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Verizon Communications by 4.2% during the first quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 21,770 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,093,000 after purchasing an additional 882 shares during the period. Finally, Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its position in Verizon Communications by 18.5% in the first quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 143,106 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $7,184,000 after buying an additional 22,358 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE VZ opened at $45.44 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $189.72 billion, a PE ratio of 11.08, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.24. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.39 and a 12 month high of $51.68. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $46.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted 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 firm had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The company’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.950-4.990 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on VZ shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Scotiabank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a report on Monday, March 9th. Dbs Bank cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.59.

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.