Subscriber Growth Pushes Verizon Revenue in Q2 as Profit Falls

With the addition of 531,000 wireless subscribers, Verizon reported an increase in operating revenue while profit fell 5.2 percent for the second quarter compared to the same quarter in 2017.

Revenue in the second quarter was $32.2 billion, up from $30.5 billion for the year-ago quarter. Profit was $4.24 billion, down from $4.47 billion.

“Verizon is extremely well-positioned for the future,” said Lowell McAdam, Verizon’s chairman and CEO. “Our financial and operating results for the first half of 2018 were strong, as evidenced by service revenue, earnings and operating cash flow growth delivered in a highly competitive marketplace.”

Wireless revenue totaled $22.4 billion for the quarter, up 5.5 percent from a year ago. The 531,000 net subscriber addition included 199,000 net phone additions and 369,000 other connected device additions, primarily wearables — and a loss of 37,000 tablets.

Wireline revenue decreased 3.4 percent, to $7.5 billion, compared to the year-ago quarter.

FiOS revenue grew 2 percent to $3 billion. Verizon added 43,000 FiOS Internet connections and lost 37,000 FiOS video connections amid pressures from cord-cutting of video bundles.

Verizon’s IoT revenue, including Verizon Connect, increased about 13 percent year over year.