Form 4: Verizon’s Hans Vestberg adds phantom stock

Verizon director Hans Erik Vestberg acquired 183.933 phantom stock units via the company’s deferred compensation plan, bringing his indirect balance to 224,815.225 units.

Summary

• On 2026-03-26, Hans Erik Vestberg acquired 183.933 phantom stock (unitized) derivative units under Verizon’s Deferred Compensation Plan (transaction code “A”).
• The price of the derivative security was reported as $14.47 per unit.
• The transaction reflects an underlying equivalent of 52 shares of Verizon common stock.
• Following the transaction, Vestberg beneficially owned 224,815.225 phantom stock units, held indirectly via the Deferred Compensation Plan.
• Phantom stock units are economically equivalent to a portion of a Verizon common share and are settled in cash; payouts occur per elections made under the plan.
• The reported balance includes units credited through dividend reinvestment.
• Form 4 was signed by attorney-in-fact Evgeniya Berezkina on 2026-03-30.

Sentiment

Score: 5

Explanation: StockSavvy.ai views this as neutral; a routine, small insider phantom stock accrual that modestly supports alignment without signaling a change in fundamentals.

Positives

• Incremental increase in equity-linked, deferred compensation (183.933 units) supports long-term alignment with shareholder value.
• Substantial accumulated balance (224,815.225 units) indicates meaningful exposure to Verizon’s share performance.
• Cash-settled phantom stock avoids shareholder dilution and does not affect share count.

Negatives

• Phantom stock is cash-settled and not an open-market common stock purchase, limiting traditional insider-buying signaling value.
• The incremental transaction size is small (183.933 units; 52 underlying shares), implying minimal change in alignment.
• Indirect ownership via a deferred compensation plan provides less immediacy than direct common stock ownership.

Future Outlook

No forward-looking statements or guidance were provided.

Management Comments

• Each share of phantom stock is economically equivalent to a portion of one share of common stock and is settled in cash; payouts occur per elections made under the deferred compensation plan.
• Reported holdings include phantom stock acquired through dividend reinvestment.

Industry Context

StockSavvy.ai notes that executive deferred compensation and phantom stock units are common across large-cap telecoms and media peers, providing equity-linked exposure without share issuance or dilution.

Comparison to Industry Standards

• AT&T: Senior executives commonly accrue deferred compensation/phantom units that are cash-settled, similar in structure and non-dilutive impact.
• Comcast: Uses deferred stock units within executive compensation programs; while often equity-settled, the alignment objective mirrors Verizon’s phantom unit approach.
• T-Mobile US: Relies heavily on RSUs/PSUs; while typically equity-settled, the end-goal of aligning pay with shareholder returns is comparable despite different instruments.

Stakeholder Impact

• Shareholders face no dilution since phantom stock is cash-settled.
• Minimal impact on trading liquidity or float given no common shares were bought or sold.
• Reinforces long-term alignment between executive compensation and Verizon’s share performance.

Next Steps

• No additional actions disclosed.

Key Dates

Keywords

Verizon Communications, VZ, Hans Erik Vestberg, Form 4, insider transaction, phantom stock, deferred compensation plan, beneficial ownership, dividend reinvestment, cash-settled units