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Verizon (NYSE:VZ) shares fell nearly 2.5% in premarket trading on Tuesday as the telecom giant reported fourth-quarter results and issued a forecast for 2023 that was below expectations.
Looking to 2023, Verizon (VZ) said it expects wireless service revenue growth to be between 2.5% and 4.5% and adjusted earnings between $4.55 and $4.85 per share, well below the $4.97 per share that analysts were expecting.
Adjusted EBITDA is expected to be between $47B and $48.5B and capital spending is forecast to be between $18.25B and $19.25B, including the last $1.75B of the $10B for C-Band related spending.
New York City-based Verizon (VZ) earned an adjusted $1.19 per share on $35.3B in operating revenue during the fourth-quarter, compared to analysts estimates of $1.19 per share on $35.22B in revenue. During the period, Verizon (VZ) added 217,000 postpaid subscribers, topping analysts estimates of just over 209,000.
Verizon (VZ) added a total of 416,000 net broadband subscribers, the company’s best performance in more than a decade. It also added 59,000 Fios internet net additions during the period.
For the full-year, Verizon (VZ) said it added 1.29M total broadband subscribers.
The company will host a conference call at 8:30 a.m. to discuss the results.
Earlier this month, investment firm UBS said it expected Verizon (VZ) to lose subscribers again in 2023 but be “more nimble.”