Verizon's Quarterly Profit Rises On Wireless Gains
WASHINGTON (Dow Jones) -- Verizon Communications on Monday reported a slight increase in third-quarter profit to nearly $2 billion, as the phone giant added 1.9 million net wireless customers.
The New York-based company posted net income of $1.92 billion, or 66 cents a share, compared with year-ago profit of $1.87 billion, or 67 cents a share.
Revenue rose 26% to $23.25 billion from $18.49 billion, boosted by wireless growth and a contribution from long-distance carrier MCI, which Verizon acquired in January. Adjusted for the MCI deal, sales rose a lesser 3.6% on a pro forma basis.
Excluding special costs, the company would have earned $2 billion, or 68 cents a share, in the latest quarter.
On average, Verizon had been forecast to earn 66 cents a share on revenue of $23.03 billion, according to the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson First Call.
Verizon Wireless added 1.9 million net customers -- the most of any U.S. mobile operator -- in the third quarter to bring its total to 56.7 million. Churn, or the percentage of customers who cancel service, came in at an industry-low 1.2%.
The company said its wireless business now generates more revenue than any other mobile operator, including Cingular Wireless, the biggest wireless phone company in terms of subscribers.
During the September quarter, Verizon also added 147,000 customers to its high-speed fiber service and 448,000 broadband customers in total. The company now has 522,000 fiber Internet customers and serves 6.6 million broadband connections overall.
On Friday, shares of Verizon, a Dow Jones Industrial Average component, closed at $38.84, up a dime.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires "
Posted to the site on 30th October 2006
