OREANDA-NEWS. January 28, 2013.
Wireless
8.5 percent year-over-year increase in service revenues in 4Q 2012; 8.4 percent year-over-year increase in retail service revenues, reported the press-centre of Verizon.  

2.2 million retail net additions, excluding acquisitions and adjustments, including a record-high 2.1 million retail postpaid net connections; low retail postpaid churn of 0.95 percent; 98.2 million total retail connections, 92.5 million total retail postpaid connections.

4G LTE service now available to more than 273 million people in 476 markets across the U.S.

Wireline
4.1 percent year-over-year increase in consumer revenues; consumer ARPU (average revenue per user) up 9.5 percent year over year, to USD 105.63.

144,000 FiOS Internet and 134,000 FiOS Video net additions, with continued increased sales penetration for both services; 5.4 million total FiOS Internet, 4.7 million total FiOS Video customers.

Consolidated Earnings
A loss of USD 1.48 in earnings per share (EPS), compared with a loss of 71 cents per share in 4Q 2011, impacted by non-cash pension items in both quarters and additional non-operational debt retirement and other restructuring items in 4Q 2012.

A 7-cent-per-share impact due to Superstorm Sandy yielded 38 cents per share in adjusted EPS (non-GAAP), compared with 52 cents in adjusted EPS in 4Q 2011.

NEW YORK – Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ) today reported strong customer and revenue growth in Verizon Wireless and Verizon FiOS services in fourth-quarter 2012 -- positioning the company well for 2013.

Verizon Wireless reported record-setting customer additions in the quarter, while Verizon FiOS customer additions were higher in fourth-quarter 2012 than in the prior two quarters, despite the impact of Superstorm Sandy.

“Verizon seized growth opportunities in the fourth quarter to cap a year of solid progress across the entire business,” said Lowell McAdam, Verizon chairman and CEO.  “We delivered a total return of 13.2 percent to shareholders in 2012, and we enter 2013 ready to accelerate the momentum we’ve achieved and create significant shareholder value in the years to come.”

4Q and Full-Year Earnings Results
Due to the impact of non-operational items announced earlier this month, Verizon reported a loss of USD 1.48 in EPS in fourth-quarter 2012, compared with a fourth-quarter 2011 loss of 71 cents per share.

A reduction of 7 cents per share due to impacts from Superstorm Sandy yielded a total of 38 cents per share in adjusted fourth-quarter 2012 earnings (non-GAAP).  Fourth-quarter 2012 charges totaled USD 1.86 per share: USD 1.55 per share related to severance, pension and benefit charges primarily for the annual actuarial valuation of Verizon’s benefit plans as well as the annuitization of various pension liabilities during the quarter, and 31 cents per share related to the early retirement of debt and other restructuring activities.

Comparable adjusted fourth-quarter 2011 earnings of 52 cents per share excluded charges of \\$1.23 per share, primarily related to the valuation of pension plans.

On an annual basis, Verizon reported 31 cents in 2012 EPS, compared with 85 cents per share in 2011.  Adjusted annual EPS (non-GAAP) was USD 2.24 in 2012, compared with USD 2.15 in 2011.

Revenue Growth Across All Strategic Areas; Continued Strong Cash Flow

In fourth-quarter 2012, Verizon’s consolidated quarterly operating revenues exceeded USD USD 30.0 billion for the first time in company history.  This represented a 5.7 percent increase compared with fourth-quarter 2011 and was the company’s highest year-over-year quarterly growth rate in 2012.

For full-year 2012, Verizon’s revenues totaled USD 115.8 billion, an increase of 4.5 percent, or USD 5.0 billion, compared with 2011.  In fourth-quarter 2012, Verizon saw year-over-year revenue increases across all strategic growth areas: 8.5 percent for Verizon Wireless service revenues, 15.7 percent for FiOS revenues and 5.3 percent for strategic enterprise services.

Cash flow from operating activities totaled USD 31.5 billion in 2012, an increase of 5.7 percent compared with USD 29.8 billion in 2011.

Capital expenditures were USD 16.2 billion in 2012, including USD 135 million in companywide capital related to Superstorm Sandy recovery efforts, and totaled about USD 70 million less than in 2011.  Free cash flow (non-GAAP, cash flow from operations less capex) was USD 15.3 billion for the year, an increase of 13.1 percent compared with USD 13.5 billion in 2011.

Verizon maintained a strong balance sheet, with year-end 2012 total debt of \\$52.0 billion, down from USD 55.2 billion at year-end 2011.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business, government and wholesale customers.  Verizon Wireless operates America’s most reliable wireless network, with more than 98 million retail connections nationwide.  Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America’s most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers integrated business solutions to customers in more than 150 countries, including all of the Fortune 500.  A Dow 30 company with nearly USD116 billion in 2012 revenues, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of 183,400.  For more information, visit www.verizon.com.