First National Bank of Omaha Sells 22,988 Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. $VZ

First National Bank of Omaha reduced its stake in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 34.4% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 43,910 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock after selling 22,988 shares during the period. First National Bank of Omaha’s holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $1,875,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. USS Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Verizon Communications by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 713,156 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $35,790,000 after purchasing an additional 31,354 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Capital Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 8.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Capital Inc. now owns 317,284 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $13,434,000 after acquiring an additional 25,156 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,382,975 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $97,059,000 after acquiring an additional 316,854 shares during the period. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. raised its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 127.0% in the 2nd quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 184,170 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $7,798,000 after acquiring an additional 103,046 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keudell Morrison Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,171,000. Institutional investors own 62.06% of the company’s stock.

Verizon Communications Price Performance

NYSE VZ opened at $50.19 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $208.52 billion, a PE ratio of 13.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.60. The business’s fifty day moving average is $45.65 and its 200 day moving average is $47.35. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.39 and a fifty-two week high of $51.68.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) last released 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 analyst estimates of $35.16 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 11.64%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.22 earnings per share. Verizon Communications’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were issued a $0.7075 dividend. This represents a $2.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VZ shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Barclays boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Verizon Communications from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.84.

Insider Transactions at Verizon Communications

In other Verizon Communications news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.68, for a total transaction of $53,548.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 109,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,348,276.88. This trade represents a 0.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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.