Vodafone (VOD) Better Play on CDMA iPhone (AAPL) than Verizon (VZ)

January 18, 2011 10:46 AM EST
Barron's argued in an article on Tuesday that the CDMA version of Apple Inc.'s (NASDAQ: AAPL) popular iPhone may be better played on Vodafone Group PLC (NASDAQ: VOD) than Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ).

Vodafone owns a 45 percent stake in Verizon Wireless, while Verizon Communications holds the remaining majority of the No. 1 wireless carrier in the U.S.

Investors have eagerly anticipated the iPhone arriving on Verizon, pushing shares of Verizon Communications up 10 percent in the past three months to around $36. The stock is trading at 16x projected 2011 profit of $2.23.

On the other side, shares of Vodafone listed in the U.S. are trading at just $27 or 9x of the company's estimate $2.97 earnings for its fiscal year.

"It's bizarre. If you take out Verizon Wireless from the two companies, Verizon's wireline business trades at a premium to Vodafone's wireless business, which is clearly superior," Craig Moffett, analyst at Sanford Bernstein, said.

Moffett prefers AT&T Inc (NYSE: T), the former exclusive iPhone provider in the U.S, over Verizon.

Shares of Vodafone are up 5 percent to $28.88 in midday market movement on Tuesday, while shares of Verizon are down 1.35 percent to $34.98.


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