Verizon Poised to Take Over Wireless Unit From Vodafone This Year

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Verizon Communications Inc. is eager to take over its Verizon Wireless business unit this year, according to a report this week from Bloomberg.

Vodafone Group Plc owns 45 percent of Verizon Wireless; the companies in recent months have been hashing out whether Verizon will get to buy Vodafone’s stake, which analysts say could cost $115 billion.

The wireless division is the most profitable within Verizon. It added 2.1 million subscribers last quarter, reaching a record number and surpassing all of its rivals, including AT&T.

Verizon wants to control what is genuinely the best telecom asset on the planet,” Jonathan Chaplin, an analyst at New Street Research in New York, who has a neutral rating on Verizon, told Bloomberg.

So far, no one is confirming any formal talks about Vodafone selling its Verizon Wireless ownership, but such discussions are likely to resume this year.