Wearable Electronics Drive Verizon Subscriber Sign-Upgrades

   By Austen Hufford 
 

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) said growth in new types of internet-connected devices, primarily wearable electronics, drove subscriber sign-ups in its latest quarter, even as the number of phone and tablet subscribers declined.

The company also continued to post strong revenue growth, showing how it continues to defend its top line even as the wireless market matures.

Verizon reported a net increase of 260,000 retail postpaid connections in its first quarter, driven by an addition of 359,000 subscriptions related to miscellaneous connected devices. That growth was partially offset by net phone losses of 24,000 and tablet losses of 75,000. Last year Apple Inc. released the cellular version of its latest watch.

Verizon reported about 116.2 million total wireless connections, up from 113.9 million in the same quarter the previous year, but down from 116.3 million in the fourth quarter.

The company also continued to see declines in Fios television customer count. It lost 22,000 Fios video customers in the quarter, more than the 13,000 customers it lost in the same quarter last year.

Revenue from the wireless business, Verizon's largest, grew 4.9% to $21.9 billion.

Verizon shares rose 3.3% in premarket trading Tuesday, as the company beat Wall Street's expectations on revenue and adjusted per-share profit.

Revenue at the wireline segment, which includes its Fios service, fell 1.6% to $7.56 billion.

In all, Verizon posted a profit of $4.55 billion, or $1.11 a share, compared with a profit of $3.45 billion, or 84 cents a share, a year ago. Profit in the quarter was boosted by the new U.S. tax law.

Excluding certain items, the company posted an adjusted earnings per share of $1.17, above the $1.10 expected by analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

Total revenue grew 6.6% to $31.77 billion, above the $31.25 billion that analysts expected.

Write to Austen Hufford at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 24, 2018 09:10 ET (13:10 GMT)

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