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

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In the latest trading session, Verizon Communications (VZ - Free Report) closed at $52.76, marking a +0.5% move from the previous day. The stock lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 2.14%. At the same time, the Dow added 1.82%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.01%.

Coming into today, shares of the largest U.S. cellphone carrier had lost 1.45% in the past month. In that same time, the Computer and Technology sector lost 10.13%, while the S&P 500 lost 5.01%.

Wall Street will be looking for positivity from Verizon Communications as it approaches its next earnings report date. This is expected to be April 22, 2022. The company is expected to report EPS of $1.38, up 5.34% from the prior-year quarter. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $32.94 billion, up 0.24% from the year-ago period.

Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $5.47 per share and revenue of $134.87 billion. These totals would mark changes of +1.48% and +0.94%, respectively, from last year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Verizon Communications. 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.

Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.21% higher within the past month. Verizon Communications is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.

Investors should also note Verizon Communications's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 9.59. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 20.06, so we one might conclude that Verizon Communications is trading at a discount comparatively.

It is also worth noting that VZ currently has a PEG ratio of 2.94. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. VZ's industry had an average PEG ratio of 2.43 as of yesterday's close.

The Wireless National industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 168, which puts it in the bottom 34% 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.

To follow VZ in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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