April 22 - Shares of Verizon (VZ, Financial) slipped 3% on the opening bell Tuesday after the telecom group flagged tepid earnings growth for 2025 and reported widening subscriber losses in the first quarter.
Adjusted earnings per share rose to $1.19, exceeding analyst expectations of $1.15. Revenue climbed 1.5% year over year to $33.5 billion, also ahead of forecasts. Net income increased to $5 billion, or $1.15 per share, from $4.7 billion, or $1.09, a year ago.
Despite the beat, investors focused on weak subscriber trends. Verizon posted 289,000 postpaid phone net losses, more than double last year's 114,000 decline. Consumer wireless retail postpaid phone losses widened to 356,000, while churn rose to 1.13% from 0.90%.
Broadband net additions fell to 339,000 from 389,000, and business wireless postpaid net gains slowed to 94,000, down from 178,000.
For fiscal year 2025, Verizon projected flat to 3% adjusted EPS growth, implying limited upside. It maintained full-year guidance for capital spending and free cash flow, but said the forecast does not reflect potential tariff impacts.
