Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Stock Price Up 1.2% – Time to Buy?

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s share price traded up 1.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $45.12 and last traded at $44.2860. 23,675,540 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 19% from the average session volume of 29,129,715 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.78.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on VZ. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Dbs Bank cut shares of Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Verizon Communications from $47.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Freedom Capital raised shares of Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their price target on Verizon Communications from $54.50 to $51.50 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.03.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $184.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.80, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $45.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.15.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.07. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.46% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The business had revenue of $34.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS. The business’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. Sell-side analysts expect that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.4%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Robinswood Financial LLC purchased a new position in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth $27,000. Lam Group Inc. bought a new position in Verizon Communications during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC boosted 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 valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 539 shares during the period. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors boosted its position in Verizon Communications by 173.0% in the 4th quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

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.