Benzinga - Investors who bought stocks during the COVID-19 market crash in 2020 have generally experienced some big gains in the past two years. But there is no question some big-name stocks performed better than others since the pandemic bottom.
Verizon's Bumpy Ride: One company that has been a disappointing investment in the past two years has been telecommunications giant Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: NYSE:VZ).
At the beginning of 2020, Verizon shares were trading at $61.38. By the beginning of March, the stock had dropped to $55.16 after news of the virus spreading in China prompted concerns about a U.S. pandemic. On March 25, 2020, Verizon stock ultimately bottomed at $48.84. Fortunately, the stock rebounded somewhat from that point on as the broader market recovered.
By early September, Verizon shares were back above $61. But while the S&P 500 continued to rise in the second half of 2020, Verizon stalled out.
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By the beginning of 2021, Verizon was back down to $58.96.
Verizon In 2022, Beyond: In April 2022, Verizon dropped below its March 2020 low when the company reported it lost nearly 300,000 subscribers in the first quarter and cut its guidance. The subscriber loss was particularly bad given competitors AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and T-Mobile Us Inc (NASDAQ: TMUS) added hundreds of thousands of subscribers in the quarter.
In October 2022, Verizon reported a 23% drop in net income and the loss of an additional 189,000 monthly paid subscribers, sending the stock to new lows. Verizon shares eventually dropped as low as $34.55 before bouncing back to $38.22 today.
Still, investors who bought Verizon on the day it hit its 2020 pandemic low and held on have generated a disappointing return on their investment. In fact, $1,000 in Verizon stock bought on March 25, 2020, would be worth about $872 today, assuming reinvested dividends.
Looking ahead, analysts are expecting Verizon's stock to rebound in the next 12 months. The average price target among the 22 analysts covering the stock is $43, suggesting a 12.5% upside from current levels.
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