‘We’re assured in our technique,’ declares CEO Hans Vestberg
Verizon reported stable numbers in cellular postpaid buyer additions and robust broadband additions pushed by Mounted Wi-fi Entry.
The service famous that throughout the fourth quarter of 2023, it noticed shopper postpaid cellphone gross additions leap practically 17% year-on-year; the corporate had beforehand seen weak point on gross additions.
Nonetheless, Verizon noticed a web loss within the fourth quarter of $2.6 billion, in comparison with web earnings of $6.7 billion within the fourth quarter of 2022. That fourth-quarter determine features a varied changes and impairment prices totaling about $7.8 billion, the corporate stated, with one of many smaller quantities being $100 million associated to a litigation settlement.
Whole consolidated working income for the fourth quarter was at $35.1 billion, down simply 0.3% from the identical interval final 12 months. That slight lower was blamed on decrease wi-fi tools revenues, with complete postpaid gadget upgrades down nearly 18% within the fourth quarter.
FWA continues to see sturdy development. Verizon reported its fifth consecutive quarter of greater than 400,000 broadband web additions, hitting 413,000, of which 375,000 have been FWA prospects and the remaining have been Fios. Verizon stated that its FWA buyer base now tops 3 million, and it’s forward of schedule to realize its acknowledged purpose of getting 4-5 million FWA subscribers by the tip of 2025.
Wi-fi service revenues for the full-year 2023 have been up 3.2% year-on-year, to $76.7 billion. Verizon gave steerage that it expects to see wi-fi service income development of between 2-3.5% in 2024.
CEO Hans Vestberg stated that 2023 was “a 12 months of change” for Verizon, throughout which its efficiency improved over the course of the 12 months. “We’re assured and well-positioned to ship a stable 2024,” he stated.
Verizon reported retail postpaid web additions of 1.46 million; of that determine, retail postpaid cellphone web additions have been 449,000, in comparison with 217,000 within the fourth quarter of 2022. Postpaid cellphone gross additions (throughout each Shopper and Enterprise) have been up 12.1% year-on-year.
Retail postpaid churn was at 1.18% and retail postpaid cellphone churn was at 0.93%, up 4 foundation factors. Nonetheless, the corporate acknowledged that it must stabilize its pay as you go enterprise in 2024. Pay as you go web losses for the fourth quarter of 2023 have been 289,000, in comparison with 175,000 in the identical interval in 2022.
Executives on the corporate’s quarterly name with buyers emphasised the variations that they’re seeing in markets the place Verizon has constructed out its C-Band protection, saying that greater than 80% of its FWA gross additions have been in its first 76 C-Band markets and that it sees the next fee of step-ups to premium service plans in these markets. Vestberg stated Verizon continues to increase C-Band turn-up into new markets and can now lean into suburban and rural protection enlargement, with FWA having a “sturdy base for continued development”. Requested about capability for extra FWA development, Vestberg stated that the community has been constructed to deal with the extra calls for from FWA and that the elevated “fiberization” of Verizon’s community additionally implies that it may well deal with the transport calls for.
Verizon additionally famous that its capex spend for the full-year 2023 was $18.8 billion, down from its C-Band spending peak in 2022 of $23.2 billion. The service expects to trim its CapEx spend much more in 2024, to a variety between $17.0 billion and $17.5 billion—in step with market expectations on persevering with decline in RAN funding.