Vontobel Holding Ltd. Acquires 642,350 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 64.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,644,554 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after buying an additional 642,350 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $69,630,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VZ. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,243,533 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $52,651,000 after acquiring an additional 88,073 shares during the period. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 96,936 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $4,104,000 after acquiring an additional 6,711 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 88,706 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $3,756,000 after purchasing an additional 3,462 shares during the last quarter. Kuhn & Co Investment Counsel bought a new stake in Verizon Communications during the second quarter valued at about $206,000. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 10.8% during the second quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 107,573 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,555,000 after purchasing an additional 10,514 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

More Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon’s fiber strategy is receiving attention following its Frontier acquisition. Greater fiber scale could support broadband growth, improve network economics and strengthen the company’s competitive position. Verizon Communications Leans Into Fiber After the Frontier Close
• Positive Sentiment: Income-focused coverage continues to highlight Verizon’s roughly 6% dividend yield and 20 consecutive years of dividend increases. Analysts note that the payout appears secure, although limited growth remains a consideration for investors. Verizon’s Dividend Looks Secure But Investors Should Keep an Eye on Growth
• Positive Sentiment: A post-earnings review presents Verizon as a potential buy-or-hold candidate for income investors. The company recently exceeded quarterly EPS expectations and maintains fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of approximately $4.99 to $5.04. Verizon Buy, Sell, or Hold Post Q2 Earnings?
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The small transaction reduces his holdings by less than 1% and is unlikely to materially change the investment outlook.
• Neutral Sentiment: Articles criticizing Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF’s methodology and high-yield “dividend traps” concern other securities and do not directly alter Verizon’s fundamentals.
• Negative Sentiment: The U.S. Supreme Court rejected Verizon’s final appeal of a $47 million FCC fine tied to customer location-data practices. The ruling ends the recovery effort and reinforces regulatory and privacy-compliance risks for the telecom operator. Supreme Court Rejects Verizon Bid to Recover $47M FCC Fine

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Moffett Nathanson lowered their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.84.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In related news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.68, for a total value of $53,548.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 109,866 shares in the company, valued at $5,348,276.88. This trade represents a 0.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of VZ stock opened at $49.28 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $45.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.24. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.39 and a 1-year high of $51.68. The company has a market cap of $204.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.57.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $34.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.16 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 11.64%.The firm’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.22 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th were issued a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.7%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 73.70%.

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.