Verizon's (NYSE: VZ) Q3 wireline results were another story of gains in FiOS TV and broadband and slight declines in its global enterprise business.
The service provider reported net income of $881 million (31 cents per share), compared to $1.18 billion (41 cents per share) a year ago. Third-quarter 2010 results included 25 cents per share in non-operational charges, the largest of which was a non-cash charge related to pension settlements. The company said that excluding the one-time charge for a pension settlement would have put EPS at 56 cents.
Overall, Verizon's total operating revenues also declined 2.9 percent from Q3 2009 to $26.5 billion in Q3. However, the latest earnings figures reflect Verizon's divestiture of its rural access lines to Frontier.
Here's a breakdown of the other key metrics:
Wireline revenues: Verizon's wireline operating revenue declined 3.6 percent to $10.3 billion when compared with Q3 2009 amidst gains in its residential broadband sector and slight declines in its global enterprise business.
Broadband growth: Total wireline broadband and video revenues -- including FiOS Internet, FiOS TV and HSI (DSL-based high-speed Internet) -- were $1.8 billion in the quarter, up 20.8 percent from third-quarter 2009. During the third quarter, Verizon added 226,000 net new FiOS Internet customers and 204,000 net new FiOS TV customers. The growth of FiOS Internet connections offset a decrease in traditional DSL broadband connections.
Business Services: Verizon's global enterprise revenues declined 0.8 from $4.0 billion in Q2 to $3.9 billion, a factor the company attributed to foreign current effects. On the bright side, sales of strategic enterprise services, including security and IT solutions and strategic networking, increased 6.9 percent over Q3 2009.
Despite any declines suffered in Q3, Ivan Seidenberg, CEO and Chairman of Verizon kept an upbeat attitude about future quarters. "We are excited by the opportunities we see to expand wireline margins and the growth we see related to the upcoming launch of next-generation wireless services."
For more:
- see the release
- here's FierceIPTV's take
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