Key Stock Updates for Alibaba, Bank of America, and Verizon
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Sep 25 2025
0mins
Should l Buy VZ?
Source: NASDAQ.COM
Zacks Research Daily Highlights: The latest Zacks Research Daily features reports on 16 major stocks, including Alibaba, Bank of America, and Verizon, along with unique insights on micro-cap stock Flanigan’s Enterprises.
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Analyst Views on VZ
Wall Street analysts forecast VZ stock price to rise
14 Analyst Rating
4 Buy
10 Hold
0 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 46.380
Low
43.00
Averages
46.42
High
51.00
Current: 46.380
Low
43.00
Averages
46.42
High
51.00
About VZ
Verizon Communications Inc. is a holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, provides communications, technology, information and streaming products and services to consumers, businesses and government entities. Its Consumer segment provides wireless and wireline communications services. It also provides fixed wireless access (FWA) broadband through its 5G or 4G Long-Term Evolution (LTE) networks portfolio. The Company's Business segment provides wireless and wireline communications services and products, including FWA broadband, data, video and advanced communication services, corporate networking solutions, security and managed network services, local and long-distance voice services and network access to deliver various Internet of Things (IoT) services and products. It provides these products and services to businesses, public sector customers and wireless and wireline carriers across the U.S. and a subset of these products and services to customers around the world.
About the author

Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
- Earnings Performance: Verizon's Q1 non-GAAP EPS of $1.28 exceeded expectations by $0.07, indicating ongoing improvements in profitability, although total revenue of $34.4 billion, up 2.9% year-over-year, fell short of expectations by $490 million, reflecting increased market competition pressures.
- Strong Cash Flow Growth: The company reported free cash flow of $3.8 billion in Q1, a 4% increase from $3.6 billion in the same quarter last year, demonstrating effective cost control and spending optimization strategies, with expectations for 2026 free cash flow to exceed $21.5 billion, marking the highest level since 2020.
- Significant User Growth: Verizon achieved 55,000 postpaid phone net additions in Q1, marking the first positive growth in this category since 2013, with a year-over-year improvement of over 340,000, showcasing the company's success in attracting new customers.
- Stable Service Revenue: Mobility and broadband service revenue reached approximately $22.9 billion, a 1.6% year-over-year increase, despite an 80 basis point impact on service revenue growth due to a January network outage, yet the company still anticipates service revenue growth of 2% to 3% in 2026, reflecting resilient market demand.
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- Market Stability: As of 1:45 p.m., both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq-100 are down by 0.1%, while the S&P 500 is up by 0.1%, indicating a flat market as investors await upcoming earnings reports.
- Earnings Report Schedule: About one-third of S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 members are set to release financial reports this week, with 36.7% of Dow components providing updates, highlighting the market's focus on earnings.
- Company-Specific Updates: Verizon's mixed earnings report on Monday morning stands as the only quarterly update among Dow stocks, while Domino's Pizza fell short of Wall Street's expectations, reflecting market sensitivity to individual company performance.
- Anticipated Market Volatility: Although the market is currently stable, the impending earnings reports from five of the Magnificent 7 companies could lead to significant fluctuations, particularly as investors seek signs of profitable growth in AI services, necessitating vigilance.
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- Market Stability: As of 1:45 p.m. on Monday, the S&P 500 is up 0.1% while both the Dow and Nasdaq-100 are down 0.1%, indicating a lack of clear market direction as investors await upcoming earnings reports.
- Earnings Season Begins: About one-third of S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 members are set to report earnings this week, with 11 out of 30 Dow components (36.7%) scheduled for updates, suggesting potential market volatility ahead.
- Oil Prices Steady: Despite the ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and no new headlines from the Iran conflict, oil prices have remained largely unchanged since last Thursday, reflecting a muted market response to geopolitical risks.
- Anticipated Market Swings: With five of the Magnificent 7 companies expected to report on Wednesday or Thursday, investor focus on profitable growth in AI services could trigger significant market fluctuations, especially given the current calm market backdrop.
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- Significant Earnings Growth: Verizon's Q1 adjusted EPS of $1.28 reflects a 7.6% year-over-year increase, surpassing the $1.21 consensus estimate and marking the best quarterly growth rate since 2021, indicating sustained improvement in profitability.
- Revenue and Subscriber Growth: Total operating revenue reached $34.4 billion, up 2.9% year-over-year, although slightly below the $34.82 billion estimate; however, the addition of 55,000 postpaid phone subscribers signifies the first positive first-quarter result since 2013, demonstrating a steady recovery in the customer base.
- Strong Broadband Additions: Broadband net additions totaled 341,000, comprising 214,000 fixed wireless access and 127,000 fiber additions, bringing total broadband connections to approximately 16.8 million, indicating a stronger market position in the rapidly growing broadband sector.
- Cash Flow and Buybacks: Consolidated adjusted EBITDA grew 6.7% to $13.4 billion, the highest quarterly level in company history, while free cash flow increased by 4% to $3.8 billion; additionally, the completion of $2.5 billion in share repurchases enhances shareholder returns and market confidence.
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- Coterra Options Volume: Coterra Energy Inc (CTRA) has seen an options volume of 32,485 contracts today, equating to approximately 3.2 million shares, which represents a significant 45.3% of its average daily trading volume of 7.2 million shares over the past month, indicating heightened market interest in its future performance.
- High Strike Call Activity: Within CTRA, the $36 strike call option has recorded a trading volume of 10,001 contracts today, representing about 1.0 million underlying shares, reflecting investor expectations for future price increases, which could influence its stock price trajectory.
- Verizon Options Volume: Verizon Communications Inc (VZ) has reported an options volume of 114,120 contracts today, corresponding to approximately 11.4 million shares, accounting for a notable 44.5% of its average daily trading volume of 25.7 million shares over the past month, showcasing strong investor interest in its stock.
- Bullish Call Surge: For VZ, the $50 strike call option has seen a trading volume of 14,963 contracts today, representing around 1.5 million underlying shares, indicating market confidence in Verizon's future growth, which may drive its stock price higher.
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- Strong Earnings Beat: Verizon (VZ) reported Q1 results that exceeded expectations, leading to its largest single-day stock gain since January, with better-than-expected postpaid subscriptions and profits, and now forecasts retail postpaid phone additions at the upper end of 750K to 1M for the year, despite total revenue falling short of consensus.
- Churn Rate Improvement: CEO Dan Schulman highlighted a significant drop in churn to below 85 basis points in March, a marked improvement from Q4, indicating that Verizon's customer retention strategies are resonating effectively, which reduces reliance on costly promotions and enhances marketing efficiency.
- Commitment to Strong Dividends: Verizon remains committed to maintaining a “strong and sustainable dividend,” expecting to pay down nearly all debt from its Frontier acquisition by year-end, which will allow for cost reductions and increased EBITDA, enabling more efficient operations and substantial cash returns to shareholders.
- AI and 5G Strategic Partnerships: Management disclosed ongoing deep discussions with Google and Anthropic to leverage AI for operational efficiencies and improved customer satisfaction, with future investments in software-defined networks and 5G infrastructure expected to yield multi-billion dollar revenue opportunities, marking a critical component of Verizon's strategic development.
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