Customer-Centric Strategy
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Verizon(VZ) - 2025 Q4 - Earnings Call Transcript
2026-01-30 14:00
Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company achieved over 1 million net adds across mobility and broadband in Q4 2025, the highest quarterly volume in six years [16] - Consolidated adjusted EBITDA for Q4 was $11.9 billion, with full-year adjusted EBITDA at $50 billion, reflecting a 2.5% increase from the prior year [22] - Adjusted EPS for Q4 was $1.09, bringing the full-year total to $4.71, a growth of 2.6% from the previous year [22] - Free cash flow for the full year was $20.1 billion, anticipated to be industry-leading [23] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Postpaid phone net adds were 616,000 in Q4, the best performance in six years, with consumer postpaid phone net adds at 551,000 [16][17] - Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) net adds were 319,000, while Fios Internet delivered 67,000 net adds, the highest since 2020 [18] - The company continued to gain share in the prepaid segment, with 109,000 net adds in Q4, marking six consecutive quarters of positive growth [18] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company added 125,000 fiber net additions through Frontier, representing a 29% increase year-over-year [19] - The total broadband subscriber base exceeded 16 million, including over 10.5 million fiber customers [71] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is focused on a transformation strategy aimed at improving operational efficiency and customer experience, with a goal of achieving $5 billion in operating expense savings [7][27] - Plans to expand fiber build-out to reach 40-50 million fiber passings over the medium term, with at least 2 million new passings in 2026 [11][34] - The company aims to leverage AI to enhance customer experience and operational efficiency [13][15] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management acknowledged a critical inflection point for the company, emphasizing the need to shift culture towards customer satisfaction and brand trust [6] - The outlook for 2026 includes a target of 750,000 to 1 million postpaid phone net adds, which is 2-3 times the total from 2025 [26] - The company expects 2%-3% growth in mobility and broadband service revenue, equating to approximately $93 billion [26] Other Important Information - The company has authorized up to $25 billion in share repurchases over the next three years, with at least $3 billion planned for 2026 [36] - The board declared a dividend increase of 2.5% per share, marking the 20th consecutive year of dividend increases [35] Q&A Session Summary Question: Outlook for postpaid phones and investments needed for subscriber growth - Management highlighted that the strong outlook for postpaid phones in 2026 will be driven by improved churn rates and investments in customer experience rather than aggressive promotions [40][41] Question: Fiber passings outlook and opportunities - Management confirmed the raised target for fiber passings to 40-50 million, citing opportunities from the Frontier acquisition and partnerships [46][49] Question: Customer lifetime values and strategies to attract high-value customers - Management emphasized the importance of reducing churn and improving customer experience to enhance customer lifetime values, while avoiding price increases without corresponding value [53][56] Question: Flat service revenue growth and organic EBITDA growth - Management explained that flat service revenue growth is expected due to prior year price increases and ongoing promotional amortization, while EBITDA growth is anticipated to accelerate due to cost transformation efforts [68][72]