Verizon Raises Annual Profit Forecast After First-Quarter Subscriber Growth

Apr 27, 2026, 11:05

Introduction

Verizon has increased its expected annual profit after seeing a rise in wireless subscribers during the first quarter, which was higher than market analysts had predicted.

Main Body

The company reported a net gain of 55,000 monthly bill-paying wireless subscribers for the quarter ending in March. This is the first time the company has seen an increase during this period in over ten years, which is surprising because analysts had expected a loss of over 81,000 subscribers. As a result, Verizon now expects its total new retail phone customers for the year to be in the upper half of its original forecast of 750,000 to 1 million. This growth is the result of a new strategy to attract and keep customers by offering combined high-speed broadband and wireless plans. Furthermore, the company offered incentives to attract users from competitors like AT&T and T-Mobile. CEO Dan Schulman emphasized that these steps are designed to make switching easier and help the company lead the market again. The recent financial results also include the acquisition of Frontier, which was completed on January 20. In terms of financial performance, Verizon reported an adjusted profit of $1.28 per share, which was higher than the estimated $1.20. However, total quarterly revenue was $34.4 billion, slightly lower than the $34.84 billion expected by LSEG. This difference was partly caused by a ten-hour service outage in January, which forced the company to give $20 credits to many customers. Consequently, the company has raised its 2026 profit forecast and is now exploring partnerships to integrate 5G and fiber assets into AI infrastructure to increase future revenue.

Conclusion

Verizon has successfully stopped its trend of losing subscribers and has raised its profit goals, supported by new service bundles and plans to enter the AI infrastructure market.

Vocabulary Learning

acquisition (n.)

the act of buying or taking over another company / 收購

Example:The acquisition of Frontier was completed on January 20.

adjusted (adj.)

modified or changed to fit conditions / 調整過的

Example:Verizon reported an adjusted profit of $1.28 per share.

incentives (n.)

rewards or benefits to encourage action / 促進措施

Example:The company offered incentives to attract users from competitors.

integrate (v.)

to combine or merge into a whole / 整合

Example:Verizon is exploring partnerships to integrate 5G and fiber assets into AI infrastructure.

surprising (adj.)

unexpected / 令人驚訝的

Example:The sudden rise in subscribers was surprising to the analysts.

Sentence Learning

This difference was partly caused by a ten-hour service outage in January, which forced the company to give $20 credits to many customers.

Relative Clause: The clause 'which forced the company to give $20 credits to many customers' adds additional information about the cause of the difference.關係子句: 子句『which forced the company to give $20 credits to many customers』提供了關於差異原因的額外資訊。

The recent financial results also include the acquisition of Frontier, which was completed on January 20.

Passive Voice: The verb phrase 'was completed' is in passive form, indicating that the action was performed on Frontier.被動語態: 動詞片語 'was completed' 以被動語態呈現，表示動作是對 Frontier 執行的。

However, total quarterly revenue was $34.4 billion, slightly lower than the $34.84 billion expected by LSEG.

Contrast: The word 'however' signals a contrast between the reported revenue and the expected revenue.對比: 連接詞 'however' 表示報告的營收與預期營收之間的對比。

As a result, Verizon now expects its total new retail phone customers for the year to be in the upper half of its original forecast of 750,000 to 1 million.

Cause: The phrase 'as a result' introduces the consequence of the earlier increase in subscribers.因果: 短語 'as a result' 引出前面增長的後果。

CEO Dan Schulman emphasized that these steps are designed to make switching easier and help the company lead the market again.

Subordinating Conjunction: The clause 'that these steps are designed to make switching easier and help the company lead the market again' functions as the object of the verb 'emphasized'.連接詞: 子句 'that these steps are designed to make switching easier and help the company lead the market again' 作為動詞 'emphasized' 的賓語。