Verizon’s Reawakening

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The market, a fickle garden, has shown a surprising bloom where once lay a certain dormancy. Shares of Verizon Communications (VZ +11.83%) stirred from their winter repose on Friday, a response to subscriber gains not seen for years. It’s as though a hidden spring, long anticipated, has finally begun to thaw the company’s fortunes.

By the close of trading, the stock had risen by more than eleven percent—a significant tremor in the usually placid landscape of telecom investments. A quiet signal, perhaps, that something essential is shifting.

A New Season

The new CEO, Dan Schulman, speaks of a desire to “play to win.” A simple phrase, yet it carries the weight of intention. Verizon, a giant once given to a slow, deliberate pace, is responding to the challenge. It is a curious thing to witness a behemoth finding its agility.

The fourth quarter yielded the highest quarterly net customer additions since 2019—616,000 postpaid phone subscribers and 372,000 broadband connections. Numbers, of course, but each one represents a household, a life touched by connection, a small universe drawn into the network. Schulman signals a hardening of resolve, a determination to prevent rivals—AT&T and T-Mobile—from poaching customers. “Verizon will no longer be a hunting ground,” he declared, a statement that rings with a newfound protectiveness, like a shepherd guarding his flock.

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Total operating revenue for the fourth quarter rose two percent year over year to $36.4 billion. Adjusted earnings per share declined by less than one percent to $1.09, a slight dip, yet exceeding Wall Street’s expectations of $1.06. It’s a subtle victory, a testament to careful stewardship, a quiet strength revealed in the details.

The Promise of Growth

In 2025, Verizon generated $20.1 billion in free cash flow. Management anticipates a further increase of roughly seven percent—to at least $21.5 billion—in 2026, driven by 750,000 to 1 million new retail postpaid phone subscribers. This isn’t merely about numbers; it’s about the potential for reinvestment, for innovation, for a sustained bloom in the years to come.

“We are exiting 2025 with strong momentum,” Schulman observed, “delivered by a team intensely focused on winning through healthy volumes and fiscally responsible growth.” A simple statement, perhaps, but it carries the resonance of a promise fulfilled, a seed sown in fertile ground, a quiet confidence in the face of a vast and ever-changing landscape. The market, like the seasons, turns, and Verizon, it seems, is prepared to meet the spring.

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2026-01-31 03:12