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Verizon Communications (VZ) Outpaces Stock Market Gains: What You Should Know

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Verizon Communications (VZ - Free Report) closed at $58.27 in the latest trading session, marking a +1.02% move from the prior day. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 0.18% gain on the day. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.14%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.74%.

Coming into today, shares of the largest U.S. cellphone carrier had lost 1.01% in the past month. In that same time, the Computer and Technology sector lost 7.12%, while the S&P 500 lost 6.19%.

VZ will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release, which is expected to be January 22, 2019. On that day, VZ is projected to report earnings of $1.10 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 27.91%. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $34.31 billion, up 1.05% from the year-ago period.

Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $4.68 per share and revenue of $130.91 billion. These totals would mark changes of +25.13% and +3.87%, respectively, from last year.

Investors should also note any 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. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0% lower. VZ currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Looking at its valuation, VZ is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 12.31. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 33.12.

Meanwhile, VZ's PEG ratio is currently 2.51. 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. Wireless National stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 4.23 based on yesterday's closing prices.

The Wireless National industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 55, putting it in the top 21% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. 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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