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Verizon Communications (VZ) Gains But Lags Market: What You Should Know

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Verizon Communications (VZ - Free Report) closed at $57.26 in the latest trading session, marking a +0.37% move from the prior day. The stock lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.39%. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.83%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 1.97%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the largest U.S. cellphone carrier had lost 3.29% over the past month. This has lagged the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 3.17% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.58% in that time.

VZ will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release, which is expected to be January 26, 2021. In that report, analysts expect VZ to post earnings of $1.16 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 2.65%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $34.42 billion, down 1.03% from the year-ago period.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for VZ. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.21% lower within the past month. VZ is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.

Valuation is also important, so investors should note that VZ has a Forward P/E ratio of 11.46 right now. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 26.88, so we one might conclude that VZ is trading at a discount comparatively.

We can also see that VZ currently has a PEG ratio of 3.3. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. Wireless National stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 2.95 based on yesterday's closing prices.

The Wireless National industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 96, which puts it in the top 38% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Make sure to utilize Zacks. Com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.


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