Ritholtz Wealth Management Has $10.02 Million Stock Position in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 11.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 228,066 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,650 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $10,024,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VZ. Advantage Trust Co grew its position in Verizon Communications by 549.5% during the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 591 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Verizon Communications by 95.3% in the third quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 739.5% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 680 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the period. Global Trust Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 222.2% during the 2nd quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 725 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RMG Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded shares of Verizon Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $44.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered shares of Verizon Communications from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.47.

More Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Regulatory green light — Verizon received final approvals to close its $9.6B acquisition of Frontier, which management says will add ~30M fiber passings across 31 states and expand its broadband footprint; closing is expected Jan. 20, 2026, potentially boosting scale, cross‑sell and fiber growth prospects. Verizon and Frontier Receive All Required Regulatory Approvals to Complete Transaction
• Neutral Sentiment: Near‑term trading context — coverage notes the stock has moved down in recent sessions as broader markets rose; investors are weighing the deal benefits against near‑term execution risks. Verizon Communications (VZ) Stock Slides as Market Rises: Facts to Know Before You Trade
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming catalyst — analysts and investors are focused on upcoming company reports (including the first full quarter under new leadership) that could clarify integration progress and revenue contribution from the Frontier deal. Should You Buy Verizon Communications Stock Before Jan. 30?
• Negative Sentiment: Major outage & customer credits — a nationwide outage affecting hundreds of thousands lasted ~10–12 hours; Verizon is offering a $20 credit to affected customers, which raises near‑term customer-service costs and negative publicity. Verizon offers $20 credit to customers affected by massive wireless outage
• Negative Sentiment: Cause and scrutiny — reporting ties the outage to a software update; the event has triggered calls for mandatory refunds and could invite regulatory questions about resilience and change‑management controls. Verizon’s Hourslong Wireless Outage Tied to Software Update

Verizon Communications Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE VZ opened at $39.35 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The company has a market cap of $165.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.34. Verizon Communications Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.94 and a 52 week high of $47.35. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.81.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.02. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 19.31%. The firm had revenue of $33.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 12th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 12th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.97%.

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.