Verizon Communications (VZ) Tops Q1 EPS by 7c

(Updated - April 21, 2015 7:37 AM EDT)

Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) reported Q1 EPS of $1.02, $0.07 better than the analyst estimate of $0.95. Revenue was $32.0 billion, versus the consensus of $32.3 billion.

Wireless Operational Highlights

• Verizon Wireless had 565,000 retail postpaid net additions in first-quarter 2015, a 4.8 percent increase compared with first-quarter 2014. At the end of first-quarter 2015, the company had 108.6 million retail connections, a 5.1 percent year-over-year increase, and had 102.6 million retail postpaid connections.
• The company added 621,000 4G smartphones to its customer base in first-quarter 2015. In light of a net decline in 3G smartphones, overall smartphone growth totaled 247,000. The company also added 820,000 4G tablets and reported net declines of 385,000 basic phones and 188,000 prepaid devices in first-quarter 2015.
• 4G devices now constitute approximately 70 percent of the retail postpaid connections base, up from 49 percent a year ago – with the 4G LTE network handling about 86 percent of total wireless data traffic in first-quarter 2015.
• Growth in 4G device adoption continues to drive increased data and video usage. Within More Everything accounts, average data usage continues to rise, up 54 percent year over year.
• At 1.03 percent in first-quarter 2015, retail postpaid churn improved both sequentially and year over year. Retail postpaid smartphone customer churn was less than 0.9 percent.

Wireline Operational Highlights

• In first-quarter 2015, Verizon added 133,000 net new FiOS Internet connections and 90,000 net new FiOS Video connections. Verizon had totals of 6.7 million FiOS Internet and 5.7 million FiOS Video connections at the end of the first quarter, representing year-over-year increases of 9.4 percent and 7.9 percent, respectively.
• FiOS Internet penetration (subscribers as a percentage of potential subscribers) was 41.5 percent at the end of first-quarter 2015, compared with 39.7 percent at the end of first-quarter 2014. In the same periods, FiOS Video penetration was 36.0 percent, compared with 35.0 percent.
• By the end of first-quarter 2015, 62 percent of consumer FiOS Internet customers subscribed to FiOS Quantum, which provides speeds ranging from 50 to 500 megabits per second, up from 59 percent at year-end 2014. The highest rate of growth is in the 75-megabit-per-second tier, to which more than 20 percent of FiOS customers subscribe.
• Broadband connections totaled 9.2 million at the end of first-quarter 2015, a 2.4 percent year-over-year increase. Net broadband connections increased by 41,000 in first-quarter 2015, as FiOS Internet net additions more than offset declines in DSL-based High Speed Internet connections.
• Verizon continues to replace portions of its residential copper network with fiber optics to provide customers with a more reliable and resilient infrastructure, which has proven to increase customer satisfaction and reduce repair costs. In first-quarter 2015, Verizon migrated 47,000 customers who had been using copper connections, toward a full-year goal of 200,000.
• Verizon Enterprise Solutions helped clients around the globe improve customer experience, drive growth and business performance and manage risk in the first quarter. The company deployed innovative enterprise-grade network, cloud, security, Internet of Things, mobility and other business solutions for some of the world's leading brands, including Altisource, Cisco, Hallmark Cards Inc., MiCTA, National DCP LLC, PetSmart Inc., Slomin's Inc., TNT, Visteon Corporation and The Welsh Government.

You May Also Be Interested In

• Verizon’s newest exclusive streaming deal offers six months of the Disney Bundle, on us
• Verizon Communications (VZ) April weekly option implied volatility into quarter results
• Morgan Stanley is bullish on this cable stock