Published: December 9, 2025 – All data and news as of this date. This article is for information only and not investment advice.
Verizon stock today: price, performance and yield
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) remains one of the market’s most closely watched income stocks as 2025 draws to a close.
- Share price: Around $40.57 at the U.S. close on December 9, 2025.
- Intraday range (Dec 9): roughly $40.30 – $41.45.
- Market cap: about $174 billion, based on recent data. [1]
- 52‑week range: approximately $37.59 – $47.36 per share. [2]
On a total‑return basis, Verizon is up roughly 10% year‑to‑date in 2025, but its 1‑year return is only about 2–4%, far behind the S&P 500’s ~13% over the same period. [3]
Despite the modest share‑price performance, Verizon’s attraction for many investors is clear: a dividend yield in the mid‑6% range, among the highest in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. MarketBeat and other sources peg the annualized dividend at $2.76 per share, implying a yield of around 6.6–6.8% at current prices. [4]
Valuation remains compressed:
- Zacks data show forward P/E around 8.4×, versus roughly 12× for the wireless industry, underlining Verizon’s status as a value‑priced telecom blue chip. [5]
Q3 2025 earnings: slow growth, strong cash flow
Verizon’s most recent earnings report, Q3 2025, is central to today’s investment debate.
According to the company’s October 29 earnings release: [6]
- GAAP EPS:$1.17, up from $0.78 a year earlier.
- Adjusted EPS:$1.21, slightly above $1.19 in Q3 2024 and ahead of the ~$1.19 Wall Street consensus reported by several outlets. [7]
- Revenue:$33.8 billion, up 1.5% year‑over‑year.
- Wireless service revenue:$21.0 billion, up 2.1%, an industry‑leading figure by management’s count.
- Free cash flow (first nine months of 2025):$15.8 billion, up from $14.5 billion a year ago.
- Net unsecured debt: about $112 billion, with total unsecured debt at $119.7 billion, down from $126.4 billion in Q3 2024.
Broadband and fixed wireless continue to be bright spots:
- 306,000 broadband net additions in Q3 2025.
- Fixed wireless access (FWA) base grew to nearly 5.4 million subscribers. [8]
Consumer wireless is growing modestly:
- Consumer wireless service revenue: $17.4 billion, up 2.4% year‑over‑year.
- Postpaid phone churn of 0.91% but a postpaid phone net loss of 7,000 accounts in the quarter, showing competition remains intense. [9]
Business wireless is stable but sluggish:
- Verizon Business revenue: $7.1 billion, down 2.8% year‑over‑year, though business wireless service revenue grew 0.7%. [10]
2025 guidance: steady, not spectacular
Verizon reaffirmed its full‑year 2025 guidance, signaling management confidence in cash generation even as it restructures: [11]
- Wireless service revenue growth:2.0–2.8%
- Adjusted EBITDA growth:2.5–3.5%
- Adjusted EPS growth:1.0–3.0%
- Cash from operations:$37–39 billion
- Free cash flow:$19.5–20.5 billion
Capex is expected to land within or below the prior range of $17.5–18.5 billion, giving management more flexibility for debt reduction and dividends. [12]
From a dividend perspective, that FCF range of roughly $19.5–20.5 billion comfortably covers annual dividend outlays of about $11–12 billion, leaving room for debt reduction and selective investment—assuming earnings stay on track. [13]
New CEO Dan Schulman: leadership change and a radical reset
CEO transition
On October 6, 2025, Verizon’s board appointed Dan Schulman—best known as former CEO of PayPal—as the new Chief Executive Officer. Hans Vestberg became a special advisor through October 2026 and remains on the board until the 2026 annual meeting, while Mark Bertolini was elevated to Chairman. [14]
The CEO change coincides with Verizon’s pending $20 billion acquisition of Frontier Communications, a key plank in its broadband expansion strategy, and comes after years of heavy 5G investment and mixed subscriber trends. [15]
13,000+ layoffs and a “customer‑first, cost‑conscious” culture
Under Schulman, Verizon has moved quickly into deep restructuring:
- In a November 20 open letter titled “Building a stronger Verizon,” Schulman told employees the company is reducing its workforce by more than 13,000 employees and significantly cutting outsourced labor. [16]
- Major news outlets report this as Verizon’s largest single layoff, impacting around 20% of its management workforce and a broad cross‑section of roles across the U.S. [17]
- The restructuring includes a significant shift of corporate‑owned stores into franchise operations, alongside broader efforts to simplify the organization and cut internal “friction.” [18]
To soften the blow and position the layoffs as part of an AI‑era transition, Verizon is creating a $20 million “Reskilling and Career Transition Fund” for departing employees, focused on digital training and job placement support. [19]
Schulman has been blunt about his strategy. In earnings calls and media coverage, he has repeated that “cost reductions will be a way of life for us here,” describing Verizon as being at a “critical inflection point” where it must become “leaner, faster and bolder” to regain market leadership. [20]
For investors, this combination—new leadership, aggressive cost cuts, and an ongoing pivot toward broadband and fixed wireless—defines the core of the Verizon thesis going into 2026.
Dividend update: 19 consecutive years of growth
On December 4, 2025, Verizon’s board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.69 per share, payable February 2, 2026 to shareholders of record on January 12, 2026—unchanged from the prior quarter but continuing a stretch of 19 consecutive years of annual dividend increases. [21]
Other key dividend facts:
- Annualized payout:$2.76 per share (0.69 × 4). [22]
- At today’s price around $40–41, that implies a yield of roughly 6.6–6.8%, making Verizon one of the highest‑yielding stocks in the Dow. [23]
- MarketBeat estimates a payout ratio around 59% of earnings, a level generally considered sustainable for a mature, cash‑rich utility‑like business. [24]
The core question for dividend investors is not whether Verizon wants to keep paying (management clearly does), but whether its restructuring and competitive environment will allow enough earnings and free cash flow growth to steadily fund that payout over time.
What analysts and models are saying on December 9, 2025
Wall Street consensus: value stock with moderate upside
A cluster of recent reports paints a fairly consistent picture:
- MarketBeat’s aggregation of analyst views puts Verizon at a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target around $47–48, implying roughly 17–20% upside from current levels, plus the 6‑plus‑percent dividend yield. [25]
- Several Seeking Alpha contributors describe Verizon as a “high‑yield cash‑flow powerhouse” and “steady growth, defensive moat” stock, arguing that the current valuation (around 9× forward earnings) undervalues its improved FCF profile and dividend durability. [26]
From a more quantitative angle, Zacks’ detailed note on December 3 highlights the push‑and‑pull in Verizon’s fundamentals: [27]
- Challenges:
- A saturated U.S. wireless market and intense competition from AT&T, T‑Mobile and cable operators.
- Elevated churn in some business lines and continued promotional spending to retain customers.
- High leverage: Zacks cites ~$126.6 billion in long‑term debt versus $7.7 billion in cash and a current ratio of 0.9, meaning short‑term obligations require very careful cash management.
- Positives:
- Solid growth in consumer service revenue and broadband net adds.
- Expanding partnerships and fiber agreements that support longer‑term network and enterprise growth.
- Relatively cheap valuation: forward P/E ~8.4× vs ~12× for the industry.
Zacks assigns Verizon a Rank #3 (Hold) and notes that 2025 earnings estimates have been essentially flat over the past 60 days, while 2026 estimates have ticked down slightly—consistent with a “middling but not broken” outlook. [28]
Separately, a fresh Zacks “most searched stocks” write‑up (syndicated via Finviz) on December 9 points out that: [29]
- Verizon shares gained about 3.6% over the last month, beating the S&P 500’s ~1.9% move.
- The stock currently carries a Zacks Value Score of “A,” reinforcing its value‑oriented appeal.
- Consensus expects EPS of roughly $1.08 for the current quarter, a modest 1.8% decline year‑over‑year, with estimates nudged slightly lower in the last 30 days.
Fair‑value models: modest discount, not a deep bargain
Simply Wall St and related data feeds emphasize that the “narrative around Verizon is shifting” after its leadership change and restructuring plans, but still see some upside: [30]
- Their fair value estimate sits around $47.5 per share, implying low‑to‑mid‑teens upside from current levels.
- The discount rate has been nudged lower to reflect perceived risk reduction under the new strategy, but long‑term revenue growth assumptions have also been trimmed, suggesting tempered optimism rather than a bullish reset.
Overall, these models frame Verizon as:
A slow‑growth, high‑cash, high‑yield utility‑style telecom trading at a modest discount, not an extreme bargain.
Technical view: short‑term caution
On the purely technical side, StockInvest.us downgraded Verizon from a “Buy candidate” to a “Sell candidate” after trading on December 8: [31]
- The stock closed that day at $41.30, down 0.94%, with 20 million shares traded.
- Their model sees VZ trading near the upper edge of a wide, falling short‑term trend, often a spot where short‑term traders look to take profits.
- The system projects a potential 3‑month decline of about 7.9%, with a 90% probability that the price will land between roughly $33.8 and $38.4 in that window—though they note this could change if the price holds above current levels.
- Interestingly, the same analysis points out buy signals from both short‑ and long‑term moving averages and characterizes the stock’s volatility as “very controlled” with “low risk”, even while issuing a short‑term negative rating.
In plain English: technicians see near‑term downside risk even as fundamental and income investors focus on the attractive yield and cheap valuation.
Institutional flows and headline news on December 9, 2025
Today’s tape is filled with filings showing big money repositioning around Verizon:
- State Street Corp increased its stake by 2.1% in Q2, adding over 4.2 million shares to reach 208.2 million shares, or about 4.94% of the company, valued near $9.0 billion at the time of filing. [32]
- WINTON GROUP Ltd boosted its stake by 97% to 62,016 shares (about $2.68 million). [33]
- SVB Wealth LLC cut its position by 33.6%, selling 28,032 shares and retaining 55,328 shares (~$2.39 million). [34]
- London & Capital Asset Management Ltd reduced its holdings by 54.4%, yet still owns 385,900 shares (~$16.7 million). [35]
These mixed moves underscore the debate between value‑seeking buyers and more cautious sellers in the institutional community.
At the same time, Verizon is a top‑trending ticker on Zacks and other platforms, reflecting intense retail and professional interest as the company executes one of the largest restructurings in U.S. telecom history. [36]
Key risks to the Verizon stock story
Even with a 6–7% dividend yield and seemingly cheap valuation, investors should keep several risks in view:
- Competitive pressure and churn
Zacks and others highlight that Verizon’s business segment revenue is declining and that heightened competition from AT&T, T‑Mobile and cable operators continues to pressure pricing and churn. [37] - High leverage and interest‑rate sensitivity
With over $110 billion in net unsecured debt, Verizon remains highly leveraged. Although management is gradually bringing the debt load down, higher rates make refinancing more expensive and leave less room for error if growth slows. [38] - Execution risk on restructuring and Frontier acquisition
Cutting more than 13,000 jobs while integrating a large Frontier acquisition is complex. If customer service suffers or integration stumbles, Verizon’s churn and reputation could worsen before the benefits of cost cuts and new assets show up in earnings. [39] - Regulatory and technological uncertainty
Verizon itself warns in its forward‑looking statements that regulatory changes, cyber‑risks, network investment needs and AI‑driven disruption could all materially impact future results. [40]
The bottom line: what December 9, 2025 means for VZ investors
Putting it all together:
- Income profile: Verizon offers a rare combination of a 6‑plus‑percent yield, 19 years of dividend growth, and robust free cash flow guidance that appears to cover the payout with room to spare—at least based on current projections. [41]
- Valuation: At ~8–9× forward earnings and a modest discount to various fair‑value models, VZ screens as a relatively cheap, cash‑generative telecom rather than a value trap—provided Schulman’s turnaround works. [42]
- Strategic pivot: The CEO transition, 13,000+ layoffs, and aggressive cost‑cutting program mark the company’s sharpest strategic reset in years. For the stock, that means heightened execution risk but also the potential for margin expansion and improved growth if the plan delivers. [43]
- Short‑term vs long‑term view:
- Short‑term technical models are cautious, flagging the possibility of a pullback into the high‑30s over the next few months. [44]
- Fundamental and income‑oriented analyses are more constructive, generally pointing to mid‑teens upside plus the dividend over a multi‑year horizon if cash flows and the balance sheet continue to improve. [45]
For dividend‑focused, long‑term investors, Verizon on December 9, 2025 looks like a classic “high yield, low growth, restructuring story”: potentially rewarding if you believe Schulman can execute and if you can tolerate news‑driven volatility.
For short‑term traders, today’s newsflow and recent rally suggest a more mixed picture, with technical signals pointing to possible near‑term downside even as fundamentals slowly improve.
References
1. stockinvest.us, 2. stockinvest.us, 3. www.financecharts.com, 4. www.marketbeat.com, 5. www.nasdaq.com, 6. www.verizon.com, 7. www.marketbeat.com, 8. www.verizon.com, 9. www.verizon.com, 10. www.verizon.com, 11. www.verizon.com, 12. www.verizon.com, 13. www.verizon.com, 14. www.verizon.com, 15. www.verizon.com, 16. www.verizon.com, 17. apnews.com, 18. www.reuters.com, 19. www.verizon.com, 20. raganconsulting.com, 21. www.verizon.com, 22. www.marketbeat.com, 23. www.marketbeat.com, 24. www.marketbeat.com, 25. www.marketbeat.com, 26. chatgpt.com, 27. www.nasdaq.com, 28. www.nasdaq.com, 29. finviz.com, 30. swingtradebot.com, 31. stockinvest.us, 32. www.marketbeat.com, 33. www.marketbeat.com, 34. www.marketbeat.com, 35. www.marketbeat.com, 36. finviz.com, 37. www.nasdaq.com, 38. www.verizon.com, 39. www.verizon.com, 40. www.verizon.com, 41. www.verizon.com, 42. www.nasdaq.com, 43. www.verizon.com, 44. stockinvest.us, 45. www.marketbeat.com
