Verizon Communications Stock Shares $65 Bil Success With Investors
In the last five years, Verizon Communications (VZ) stock has returned a notable $65 Bil back to its shareholders through cold, hard cash via dividends and buybacks. Let’s look at some numbers and compare how this payout power stacks up against the market’s biggest capital-return machines.
As it turns out, VZ stock has returned the 26th highest amount to shareholders in history.
| VZ | S&P Median | |
|---|---|---|
| Dividends | $65 Bil | $3.0 Bil |
| Share Repurchase | $0.0 | $3.0 Bil |
| Total Returned | $65 Bil | $6.0 Bil |
| Total Returned as % of Current Market Cap | 30.7% | 19.1% |
Why should you care? Because dividends and share repurchases represent direct, tangible returns of capital to shareholders. They also signal management’s confidence in the company’s financial health and ability to generate sustainable cash flows. And there are more stocks like that. Here is a list of the top 10 companies ranked by total capital returned to shareholders via dividends and stock repurchases.
Top 10 Stocks By Total Shareholder Return
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| Total Money Returned | As % Of Current Market Cap | via Dividends | via Share Repurchases | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAPL | $604 Bil | 16.6% | $89 Bil | $515 Bil |
| GOOGL | $328 Bil | 9.9% | $17 Bil | $310 Bil |
| MSFT | $265 Bil | 9.9% | $121 Bil | $144 Bil |
| JPM | $197 Bil | 25.3% | $84 Bil | $113 Bil |
| XOM | $167 Bil | 23.0% | $94 Bil | $73 Bil |
| META | $165 Bil | 12.2% | $10 Bil | $155 Bil |
| BAC | $140 Bil | 40.4% | $53 Bil | $88 Bil |
| CVX | $123 Bil | 29.4% | $67 Bil | $57 Bil |
| WFC | $116 Bil | 48.7% | $27 Bil | $90 Bil |
| V | $99 Bil | 17.2% | $22 Bil | $77 Bil |
For full ranking, visit Buybacks & Dividends Ranking
What do you notice here? The total capital returned to shareholders as a % of the current market cap appears inversely proportional to growth prospects for reinvestments. Stocks like Meta (META) and Microsoft (MSFT) are growing much faster, in a more predictable way, compared to the others, but they have returned a much lower fraction of their market cap to shareholders.
That’s the flip side to high capital returns. Sure, they are attractive, but you have to ask yourself the question: Am I sacrificing growth and sound fundamentals? With that in mind, let’s look at some numbers for VZ. (see Buy or Sell Verizon Communications Stock for more details)
Verizon Communications Fundamentals
- Revenue Growth: 2.5% LTM and 0.3% last 3-year average.
- Cash Generation: Nearly 14.2% free cash flow margin and 21.2% operating margin LTM.
- Recent Revenue Shocks: The minimum annual revenue growth in the last 3 years for VZ was -2.1%.
- Valuation: Verizon Communications stock trades at a P/E multiple of 12.4
| VZ | S&P Median | |
|---|---|---|
| Sector | Communication Services | – |
| Industry | Integrated Telecommunication Services | – |
| PE Ratio | 12.4 | 23.4 |
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| LTM* Revenue Growth | 2.5% | 6.7% |
| 3Y Average Annual Revenue Growth | 0.3% | 5.5% |
| Min Annual Revenue Growth Last 3Y | -2.1% | 0.4% |
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| LTM* Operating Margin | 21.2% | 18.7% |
| 3Y Average Operating Margin | 21.3% | 18.2% |
| LTM* Free Cash Flow Margin | 14.2% | 14.3% |
*LTM: Last Twelve Months
The table gives a good overview of what you get from VZ stock, but what about the risk?
VZ Historical Risk
Verizon isn’t immune to big drops. It fell over 40% in both the Dot-Com Bubble and the Global Financial Crisis. The 2022 inflation shock hit it nearly as hard, with a 40% decline too. Even smaller pullbacks like the 2018 correction and the COVID pandemic wiped out around 18-19%. So, despite solid fundamentals, Verizon can still take a hit when markets turn sour.
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