Jennison Associates LLC Boosts Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 26.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,331,412 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 282,522 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $54,228,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 61.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 43,986 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,759,000 after acquiring an additional 16,704 shares during the last quarter. United Bank boosted its holdings in Verizon Communications by 11.5% in the second quarter. United Bank now owns 7,843 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 806 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications by 312.0% in the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 23,639 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $1,023,000 after purchasing an additional 17,901 shares during the period. HUB Investment Partners LLC grew its position 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 raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 8,993 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $389,000 after buying an additional 443 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on VZ shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Scotiabank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Evercore raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $56.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.59.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of Verizon Communications stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total transaction of $429,905.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,976,739.60. The trade was a 17.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.61, for a total value of $9,922,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 145,069 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,196,873.09. This trade represents a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356 over the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results showed an EPS beat and management described a turnaround with stronger profitability and postpaid phone subscriber gains — the core catalyst for the rally. Verizon CEO Claims Turnaround Is Officially Underway
• Positive Sentiment: Promotional push delivered ~55K new wireless subscribers and Verizon raised FY‑26 profit guidance, directly improving near‑term revenue and margin outlook. Verizon’s promos lead to 55K new wireless subscribers; raises FY26 profit guidance
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on VZ to $52 (maintaining a Neutral rating), signaling modest upside from current levels and lending analyst support to the move higher. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Consumer perks — bundled/discounted streaming offers — are likely helping acquisition and retention trends, supporting ARPU and churn improvements. Verizon’s Streaming Deals Let You Watch Netflix, Disney Plus and More, for Less
• Neutral Sentiment: Cydcor, a Verizon channel partner, won Verizon’s 2025 ACD Wireless Agent of the Year award — a positive PR/partner win but limited direct impact on VZ fundamentals. Cydcor Earns Verizon’s 2025 ACD Wireless Agent of the Year Award
• Neutral Sentiment: Small analyst tweak: Erste Group trimmed FY‑2027 EPS slightly (from $5.28 to $5.26) but keeps a Strong‑Buy — little near‑term impact given the tiny change. MarketBeat / Erste Group note
• Neutral Sentiment: Several valuation and analyst-opinion pieces revisit VZ after the Q1 surprise; useful for longer‑term positioning but not immediate catalysts. A Look At Verizon (VZ) Valuation After Strong Q1 Earnings And Subscriber Turnaround
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and commentators warn that rising total debt after the Frontier acquisition could pressure income investors and increase financial risk — this is the main structural downside investors cite. The Ticking Time Bomb That Could Force Income Investors to Sell Verizon Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Competitor OXIO hired a former Verizon executive as CCO — a small talent/competitive signal that could matter in niche TaaS segments but is unlikely to shift overall VZ fundamentals. OXIO Appoints Former Verizon Executive Jeremy Bolton as Chief Commercial Officer

Verizon Communications Trading Up 3.0%

Shares of Verizon Communications stock opened at $48.01 on Friday. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.39 and a 1-year high of $51.68. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $48.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $200.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The firm had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. Verizon Communications’s 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 analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.96 earnings per share for the current year.

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.