Short Interest in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) Declines By 23.5%
by Tristan Rich · The Markets DailyVerizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 113,473,590 shares, a drop of 23.5% from the February 12th total of 148,344,833 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 26,623,513 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days. Approximately 2.7% of the shares of the company are sold short. Approximately 2.7% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 26,623,513 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days.
More Verizon Communications News
Here are the key news stories impacting Verizon Communications this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q4/earnings + guidance — Verizon beat Q4 EPS estimates and set FY2026 EPS guidance of $4.90–$4.95, reinforcing cash flow and dividend coverage that investors prize. This underpins the stock’s recent upward move and supports dividend-focused buying. MarketBeat VZ overview
- Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade/price target lift — Oppenheimer set a new $56 price target on VZ, suggesting upside from current levels and giving investors confidence in consensus estimates and valuation support. Oppenheimer price target
- Positive Sentiment: Partnership/enterprise traction — Coverage of Kodiak AI’s milestones highlights expanded partnerships with Verizon, signaling enterprise & network monetization opportunities beyond core wireless services. That diversification can boost long-term revenue potential. Kodiak AI partnership mention
- Neutral Sentiment: Subscriber momentum — Analysts note solid postpaid phone adds and fixed wireless subscriber growth, which improve churn and lifetime value but have yet to fully translate into stronger service revenue growth. This is constructive for ARPU stability and churn metrics. Zacks subscriber growth article
- Negative Sentiment: Revenue ceiling risk — Despite subscriber gains, analysts and company commentary expect wireless service revenues to remain roughly flat near-term, which could cap share-price upside until service revenue or margin expansion resumes. Zacks revenue outlook
- Neutral Sentiment: Dividend/resilience narrative — Coverage highlighting Verizon as a high-yield, U.S.-focused defensive stock has driven demand from income-focused investors amid geopolitical volatility; this supports a higher valuation multiple relative to risk-off peers. MarketBeat dividend safe-haven piece
Verizon Communications Price Performance
VZ traded up $0.73 during trading on Friday, reaching $51.36. 21,774,016 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 24,889,018. The company has a market cap of $216.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.68, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.31. 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 has a 12-month low of $38.39 and a 12-month high of $51.67. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.41 and a 200 day simple moving average of $42.83.
Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ – Get Free Report) last released its 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. The firm had revenue of $36.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.20 billion. Verizon Communications had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 19.03%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. Verizon Communications has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.900-4.950 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Verizon Communications will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.
Verizon Communications Increases Dividend
The company also recently disclosed 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 is Friday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Verizon Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.5%. Verizon Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.15%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, Director Hans Erik Vestberg sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $7,196,873.09. This represents a 57.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Joseph J. Russo sold 9,579 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.88, for a total value of $429,905.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,976,739.60. This represents a 17.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 218,148 shares of company stock worth $10,780,356. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verizon Communications
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VZ. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Verizon Communications in the fourth quarter worth $2,357,158,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position 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 purchasing an additional 7,509,055 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Verizon Communications by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 222,951,399 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock valued at $9,080,810,000 after purchasing an additional 7,461,335 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 worth $4,747,930,000 after buying an additional 5,851,715 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Verizon Communications by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 379,402,347 shares of the cell phone carrier’s stock worth $15,453,058,000 after buying an additional 5,497,598 shares during the last quarter. 62.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
VZ has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Scotiabank upgraded Verizon Communications from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $50.25 to $54.50 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Williams Trading set a $54.00 target price on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Verizon Communications from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, January 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Verizon Communications has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.03.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Verizon Communications
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.