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Verizon Falls as Telecom Sentiment Weakens Ahead of Its Earnings

Investivoq PriceTracker

Verizon Communications (VZ) is down 3.2% today. Here is some analysis on what might have caused this price movement.

Analysis: The most likely driver appears to be a telecom sector read-through after AT&T’s third-quarter report failed to excite investors, even though it included an earnings beat and higher full-year outlook. Verizon also reports its own third-quarter results on October 26, so the stock may be seeing added pressure from cautious positioning and lingering worries about industry competition.

Details:

  • VZ traded near $43.17 on October 21, a drop of just over 3% from the prior close, showing a meaningful one-day selloff rather than a minor fluctuation.
  • AT&T released third-quarter results on October 21, and the broader communication services group weakened as investors focused on the quality of subscriber growth and the still-tough wireless backdrop.
  • Verizon has not released new company-specific results today, which makes a sympathy move tied to peer earnings and sector sentiment a plausible explanation.
  • Verizon’s next scheduled catalyst is its third-quarter 2026 earnings report on October 26, while competitive concerns in wireless remain elevated after recent market anxiety around new satellite-based offerings.

    • Sources:

    Verizon, AT&T, SEC, AP News

    Disclaimer: This price movement analysis was generated with the help of AI. Please double-check the information provided for mistakes.

    $VZ Insider Trading Activity

    VZ Insider Trades

    $VZ insiders have traded $VZ stock on the open market 10 times in the past 6 months. Of those trades, 0 have been purchases and 10 have been sales.

    Here’s a breakdown of recent trading of $VZ stock by insiders over the last 6 months:

    • SAMANTHA HAMMOCK (EVP & Chief HR Officer) sold 73,069 shares for an estimated $3,495,036
    • KYLE MALADY (EVP and Group CEO-VZ Business) has made 0 purchases and 9 sales selling 9,900 shares for an estimated $476,454.

    To track insider transactions, check out Investivoq's insider trading dashboard. You can access data on insider stock transactions through the Investivoq API insider transaction endpoint.

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    $VZ Hedge Fund Activity

    We have seen 1,553 institutional investors add shares of $VZ stock to their portfolio, and 1,471 decrease their positions in their most recent quarter.

    Here are some of the largest recent moves:

    • SIXTH STREET PARTNERS MANAGEMENT COMPANY, L.P. added 127,774,822 shares (+inf%) to their portfolio in Q2 2026, for an estimated $5,409,985,963
    • JPMORGAN CHASE & CO added 41,184,848 shares (+inf%) to their portfolio in Q2 2026, for an estimated $1,743,766,464
    • BLACKROCK, INC. added 30,188,559 shares (+8.2%) to their portfolio in Q2 2026, for an estimated $1,278,183,588
    • CHARLES SCHWAB INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC added 14,838,312 shares (+13.1%) to their portfolio in Q2 2026, for an estimated $628,254,130
    • AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL INC removed 9,847,187 shares (-37.9%) from their portfolio in Q2 2026, for an estimated $416,929,897
    • GQG PARTNERS LLC removed 9,837,354 shares (-21.5%) from their portfolio in Q2 2026, for an estimated $416,513,568
    • BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON CORP removed 7,807,225 shares (-20.5%) from their portfolio in Q2 2026, for an estimated $330,557,906

    To track hedge funds' stock portfolios, check out Investivoq's institutional holdings dashboard. You can access data on hedge funds moves and 13F filings through the Investivoq API 13F endpoint.

    $VZ Congressional Stock Trading

    Members of Congress have traded $VZ stock 3 times in the past 6 months. Of those trades, 1 have been purchases and 2 have been sales.

    Here’s a breakdown of recent trading of $VZ stock by members of Congress over the last 6 months:

    • REPRESENTATIVE GILBERT RAY CISNEROS, JR. has traded it 2 times. They made 1 purchase worth up to $15,000 on 09/18 and 1 sale worth up to $15,000 on 07/17.
    • REPRESENTATIVE LLOYD SMUCKER sold up to $15,000 on 04/23.

    To track congressional stock trading, check out Investivoq's congressional trading dashboard. You can access data on congressional stock trades through the Investivoq API Congress trades endpoint.

    $VZ Price Targets

    Multiple analysts have issued price targets for $VZ recently. We have seen 6 analysts offer price targets for $VZ in the last 6 months, with a median target of $48.0.

    Here are some recent targets:

    • Kannan Venkateshwar from Barclays set a target price of $45.0 on 07/08/2026
    • Steven Cahall from Wells Fargo set a target price of $43.0 on 07/08/2026
    • Lyaysyan Sedova from Freedom Broker set a target price of $53.0 on 06/12/2026
    • Sebastiano Petti from JP Morgan set a target price of $52.0 on 04/30/2026
    • Benjamin Swinburne from Morgan Stanley set a target price of $50.0 on 04/28/2026

    This article is not financial advice. See Investivoq's disclaimers for more information. Note that there may be inaccuracies due to mistakes in ticker-mapping, and other anomalies.