Hilltop Holdings Inc. Sells 58,395 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Hilltop Holdings Inc. lowered its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 44.9% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 71,534 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 58,395 shares during the period. Hilltop Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,591,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VZ. Lam Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Verizon Communications during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 490.0% in the fourth quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 649 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 173.0% during the fourth quarter. Sarver Vrooman Wealth Advisors now owns 707 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the period. Finally, Quattro Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Verizon Communications during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on VZ. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $54.50 to $51.50 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Dbs Bank cut Verizon Communications from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their target price on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.03.

Verizon Communications Stock Up 5.7%

Shares of VZ opened at $46.34 on Friday. 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 Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.39 and a 12 month high of $51.68. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $45.39 and its 200-day moving average is $46.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $193.47 billion, a PE ratio of 11.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.26.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.03. The business 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 19.25% and a net margin of 12.46%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.22 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued a $0.7075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. Verizon Communications’s payout ratio is currently 69.02%.

Trending Headlines about Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon beat Q2 adjusted EPS estimates at $1.30 versus $1.27 expected, helped by record EBITDA margins and stronger cash generation. Verizon earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its full-year 2026 guidance for adjusted EPS, mobility and broadband service revenue, and free cash flow, signaling management confidence in the outlook. Reuters guidance article
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon posted better-than-expected subscriber momentum, including 184,000 postpaid phone additions and more than 550,000 total mobility and broadband net adds, showing the core business is improving. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Free cash flow rose 24.4% and Verizon expanded its full-year buyback target to as much as $4.5 billion, both supportive of shareholder returns. Verizon press release
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon also announced a more than $1 billion dark fiber deal with Google for AI data centers, suggesting potential upside from infrastructure demand and additional AI-related contracts. Reuters Google deal article
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue came in below Wall Street expectations and was slightly lower year over year, so top-line pressure is still a concern. Verizon earnings report
• Neutral Sentiment: Options activity was unusually heavy, with traders buying more call options than normal, which may reflect speculative bullish positioning rather than fundamental news. GuruFocus earnings call highlights

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.