Verizon Cuts Price Target to $47, Dividend Yield at 6.80%
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Source: Benzinga
- Analyst Rating Adjustment: Morgan Stanley's analyst Benjamin Swinburne lowered Verizon's price target from $48 to $47 while maintaining an Equal-Weight rating, reflecting a cautious outlook on the company's future performance, which may impact investor confidence.
- Market Reaction: JP Morgan analyst Sebastiano Petti also cut Verizon's price target from $49 to $47, maintaining a Neutral rating, indicating concerns about the overall outlook for the communications services sector, which could put pressure on the stock price.
- Upcoming Earnings Report: Verizon announced it will report its fourth-quarter earnings on January 30, 2026, with investors closely monitoring its financial performance to assess the company's ongoing appeal in a high-dividend environment.
- Dividend Yield Advantage: With a current dividend yield of 6.80%, Verizon attracts investors seeking stable returns amid increasing market uncertainty, potentially providing some support for its stock price.
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Analyst Views on VZ
Wall Street analysts forecast VZ stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for VZ is 46.42 USD with a low forecast of 43.00 USD and a high forecast of 51.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
14 Analyst Rating
4 Buy
10 Hold
0 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 39.410
Low
43.00
Averages
46.42
High
51.00
Current: 39.410
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.
Verizon Reports Strong Q4 Results and Optimistic 2026 Guidance
- Significant User Growth: Verizon achieved 616,000 postpaid phone net additions in Q4 2025, a 22.2% increase from 504,000 in Q4 2024, marking the best quarterly performance since 2019, indicating a strong recovery in customer attraction and market share.
- Strong Financial Performance: In 2025, Verizon reported total revenue of $138.2 billion, up 2.5% from $134.8 billion in 2024, with earnings per share (EPS) at $4.06 and adjusted EPS at $4.71, reflecting ongoing improvements in profitability and revenue growth.
- Acquisition Drives Network Expansion: The completion of the Frontier acquisition on January 20, 2026, expands Verizon's fiber footprint to over 30 million homes and businesses, accelerating its national mobility and broadband convergence strategy and enhancing competitive positioning.
- Positive Future Outlook: Verizon expects retail postpaid phone net additions of 750,000 to 1 million in 2026, with service revenue growth of 2% to 3%, and adjusted EPS projected at $4.90 to $4.95, showcasing strong growth potential during its transformation phase.
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Verizon Reports Strong Q4 Beats and 2026 Outlook
- Optimistic Full-Year Outlook: Verizon anticipates retail postpaid phone net additions of 750,000 to 1 million for 2026, with adjusted EPS expected between $4.90 and $4.95, reflecting a growth of 4% to 5%, which would surpass market expectations and demonstrate the company's robust performance in a competitive telecom landscape.
- Q4 Performance Exceeds Expectations: The company reported a net income of $2.45 billion for Q4, with earnings per share of $0.55, showing a year-over-year decline; however, the adjusted EPS of $1.09 beat analyst forecasts, indicating effective revenue and cost management.
- Significant User Growth: Verizon added 616,000 postpaid phone subscribers in Q4, significantly exceeding the market expectation of 420,491 by 22%, reflecting successful strategies in user acquisition and retention, thereby enhancing market competitiveness.
- Strong Cash Flow: The company expects operational cash flow of $37.5 billion to $38 billion and free cash flow of at least $21.5 billion for 2026, showcasing effective capital expenditure and operational efficiency management, which supports future investment and growth plans.
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