MGB Wealth Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

MGB Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 177.7% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 20,362 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,030 shares during the period. MGB Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $895,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 95.3% during the third quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 739.5% in the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares during the period. Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Silicon Valley Capital Partners increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 52.4% during the 2nd quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 782 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the period. Finally, Richardson Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verizon Communications during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $48.90 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $43.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $206.24 billion, a PE ratio of 12.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.33. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $50.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The company had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.10 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.8%. This is an increase from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Verizon Communications news, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the firm’s 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 owned 44,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. This trade represents a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 145,069 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,196,873.09. The trade was a 57.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Verizon Communications

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

• Positive Sentiment: Verizon closed its Frontier asset acquisition and rolled out a transformation plan targeting several billion dollars in annual cost savings while integrating industry‑wide APIs via Aduna—moves that should expand fiber scale and improve margins. Verizon Reshapes Fiber, Costs And Enterprise Services With Frontier And Aduna
• Positive Sentiment: Aduna reached a milestone securing CAMARA‑compliant U.S. network API coverage with backing from AT&T, T‑Mobile and Verizon, strengthening Verizon’s ability to sell standardized network intelligence to large enterprises. Aduna Reaches Milestone as a Leading Provider of U.S. Network APIs
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and outlets continue to highlight Verizon as a value/momentum/dividend name given recent performance, steady cash flow and yield — supporting investor interest from income and value buyers. Here’s Why Verizon Communications (VZ) is a Strong Value Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Industry reports highlight a growing 5G smart‑stadium and venue market where Verizon is listed among key players — reinforcing long‑term demand for Verizon’s 5G and edge services. Fifth Generation (5G)-Powered Smart Stadiums Analysis Report 2026-2035
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Dan Schulman will speak at the Morgan Stanley TMT conference on March 2; the webcast could prompt volatility or new guidance commentary but is not expected to change fundamentals by itself. Verizon to speak at Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference on March 2
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage notes show modest analyst target‑price tweaks (around $49–$50), reflecting slight recalibration rather than a consensus re‑rating. How The Verizon Communications (VZ) Investment Narrative Is Shifting As Analysts Rework Price Targets
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest jumped ~34.8% in mid‑February to ~148.3M shares (~3.5% of float), increasing potential selling pressure and amplifying downside risk if momentum or headlines flip negative. (Short‑interest data reported 2/25/2026)

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Barclays assumed coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 target price for the company. Evercore lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.02.

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.