Teacher Retirement System of Texas Grows Stake in Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 41.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,197,366 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after purchasing an additional 639,380 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $89,499,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VZ. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 215,490,064 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,470,788,000 after acquiring an additional 7,276,809 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 51.1% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,512,228 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $637,812,000 after acquiring an additional 4,905,101 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at about $161,346,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 50.4% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 8,848,766 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $385,983,000 after acquiring an additional 2,965,033 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Credit Agricole S A acquired a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications during the third quarter valued at about $76,631,000. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Mary-Lee Stillwell sold 8,569 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $428,450.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 43,782 shares in the company, valued at $2,189,100. This represents a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 44,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. This trade represents a 17.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356 over the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $56.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Scotiabank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on Verizon Communications in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $49.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.56.

Verizon Communications Stock Performance

Shares of VZ stock opened at $45.96 on Thursday. 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 Inc. has a one year low of $38.39 and a one year high of $51.68. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.35, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.29.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.9 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.7075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 69.88%.

Key Verizon Communications News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Dividend reliability attracts income investors — Barron’s highlights Verizon’s ~4.4% yield as a steady, lower-volatility telecom holding, supporting demand from dividend-focused funds and long-term income buyers. AT&T vs. Verizon vs. T-Mobile: Why This 4.4% Yield Is the Steadiest Bet in Telecom.
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings event in focus — Verizon confirmed its Q1 2026 earnings/webcast on April 27; the report will be the key near-term catalyst for the stock as investors look for revenue, wireless trends, and fiber progress. Verizon to report first-quarter earnings on April 27, 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Market prep and estimates — preview pieces (Yahoo Finance, Zacks) urge investors to focus on key metrics (wireless service revenue, broadband/fiber growth, Frontier integration) ahead of Q1; expectations are mixed and will frame the stock’s immediate move. Verizon to Report Q1 Earnings: How to Approach the Stock Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Industry competition and near-term headwinds — previews note that intensifying competition (wireless pricing and fiber buildouts) could limit upside in the quarter even as longer-term 5G and fiber investments continue. Verizon to Report Q1 Earnings: How to Approach the Stock Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Partner and vendor execution risks — AST SpaceMobile’s recent launch mishap and resulting share drop highlight third-party deployment risks for space-based services; any dependency or perceived tie to similar projects can spook investors. AST SpaceMobile Drops 15% After Blue Origin Satellite Mishap (VZ)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and institutional repositioning — recent Quiver/GlobeNewswire data show notable insider sales and large institutional trimming by some big holders, which can weigh on sentiment even if other institutions add exposure. Verizon Communications Inc. Schedules First-Quarter 2026 Earnings Report and Webcast

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.