Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) Trading Up 1.7% – Should You Buy?

02 Aug 2026, 10:40 by Tristan Rich · The Markets Daily

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report)’s share price rose 1.7% on Friday . The company traded as high as $46.91 and last traded at $46.8850. Approximately 28,264,762 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 3% from the average daily volume of 29,158,889 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on VZ shares. Moffett Nathanson reduced their price objective on shares of Verizon Communications from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Verizon Communications from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Freedom Capital upgraded Verizon Communications to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on Verizon Communications from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Verizon Communications has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.84.

Read Our Latest Report on VZ

Verizon Communications Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $45.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $195.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.21, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.26.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The cell phone carrier reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $34.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.16 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 19.48%. Verizon Communications’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.22 EPS. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.990-5.040 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

Verizon Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.7075 per share. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio is 73.70%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,357,158,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 15.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 62,101,021 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $3,117,471,000 after acquiring an additional 8,289,877 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Verizon Communications by 31.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 31,584,162 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $1,286,423,000 after acquiring an additional 7,509,055 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 222,951,399 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,080,810,000 after acquiring an additional 7,461,335 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Verizon Communications by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 116,570,816 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $4,747,930,000 after acquiring an additional 5,851,715 shares in the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verizon Communications Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.