Verizon Loses 289 Thousand Postpaid Subscribers In Q1 Due To Price Hikes And Competition

Verizon Communications Inc VZ stock reported fiscal first-quarter results Tuesday. The stock price tumbled after the report.

Its revenue growth was 1.5% year-over-year, reaching $33.49 billion, topping the analyst consensus estimate of $33.24 billion. Adjusted EPS of $1.19 topped the analyst consensus estimate of $1.15.

Total wireless service revenue was $20.8 billion, up 2.7% year over year.

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Postpaid phone net losses were 289,000 versus 114,000 net losses Y/Y driven by price hikes, intense rival promotional offers, and lesser government support. Verizon attributed some of the loss to lower spending by some federal agencies as the Trump administration moves to slash thousands of jobs, Bloomberg reports.

Verizon Business’ retail postpaid net additions were 94,000. The quarter saw 339,000 total broadband net additions, compared to 389,000 Y/Y. 

The company ended the quarter with over 12.6 million broadband subscribers, up 13.7% year over year. Broadband growth marks Verizon’s attempts to offer fiber connections and home wireless service powered by its 5G networks, which are bundled with its mobile plans and content packages.

At the end of the quarter, the company had over 4.8 million fixed wireless subscribers. Total fixed wireless access net additions reached 308,000 in the quarter.

Verizon said it is well-positioned to achieve the next milestone of 8 to 9 million fixed wireless access subscribers by 2028.

Total Verizon Business revenues were $7.3 billion, down 1.2% Y/Y. Total Verizon Consumer revenue rose by 2.2% Y/Y to $25.6 billion. Consumer wireless retail postpaid churn was 1.13%, and wireless retail postpaid phone churn was 0.90%. 

Verizon Consumer clocked wireless retail postpaid phone net losses of 356,000, versus 194,000 net losses Y/Y. Verizon Consumer had fixed wireless net additions of 199,000.

Verizon’s net income stood at $5.0 billion versus $4.7 billion a year ago.

The consumer segment EBITDA margin improved by 20 bps to 42.8%, while the business segment EBITDA margin grew by 240 bps to 23.1%. Company-level adjusted EBITDA of $12.6 billion, up from $12.1 billion Y/Y.

Verizon’s quarterly free cash flow was $3.6 billion, up from $2.7 billion Y/Y.

In March, Verizon Chief Revenue Officer Frank Boulben warned against weaker subscriber numbers due to competition, as per Bloomberg. After the Christmas holiday, Verizon ended its seasonal promotions, unlike its rivals, he said. Customers are also keeping their phones longer.

Verizon recently promised a three-year price guarantee and a free phone trade-in for mobile phones and home internet plans to gain market share.

Verizon and its rivals remain shielded from President Donald Trump’s tariff policies because of their U.S. focus, according to Bloomberg analysts. However, they added that telecom companies could be vulnerable to longer-term effects, such as downgrades from premium phone plans.

FY25 Outlook: Verizon reiterated a 2.0%–2.8% growth in wireless service revenue. It reaffirmed an adjusted EPS of $4.59 – $4.73 versus consensus of $4.67.

Verizon reiterated $17.5 billion to $18.5 billion in 2025 free cash flow, $35 billion to $37 billion in operating cash flow, and $17.5 billion to $18.5 billion in capital expenditure. Verizon’s guidance does not include any tariff impact.

Price action: VZ stock is down 5.73% at $40.48 premarket at the last check on Tuesday.

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