Verizon (TechCrunch’s parent company) just released its earnings report for the fourth quarter of 2018. The company generated $34.3 billion in revenue with an adjusted EPS of $1.12 that excludes special items.
Verizon’s actual EPS for this quarter is 47 cents. The reason why the company had to adjust its EPS is that the company wrote down $4.6 billion in Q4 2018 for the value of its media division, Verizon Media, formerly known as Oath. The company also took a $2.1 billion charge following a voluntary redundancy program.
Wall Street analysts had expected earnings per share of $1.09 and $34.44 billion in revenue. In other words, earnings per share are slightly above expectations, revenue is slightly below. Revenue is up 1 percent year over year.
Verizon shares (NYSE:VZ) are currently trading down 0.13 percent in pre-market trading compared to yesterday’s closing price of $55.07.
Growth has been strong on the mobile front in particular. The company added 1.2 million postpaid wireless subscribers during the quarter.
“Verizon finished 2018 by delivering solid financial and operational performance, as evidenced by our strong wireless service revenue and earnings growth,” Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg wrote in the release. “2018 was a remarkable year full of 5G firsts, including being first in the world to commercially deploy 5G with our 5G Home product. As we head into 2019 and the 5G era, we’re beginning a period of transformational change. We are laser focused on delivering customers a best-in-class and game-changing experience on our networks.”
In case Verizon’s priorities aren’t clear, Vestberg managed to say “5G” four times in just one sentence. On the media front, Verizon Media generated $2.1 billion during Q4, down 5.8 percent compared to Q4 2017.
When it comes to outlook, Verizon expects to generate “low single-digit percentage growth” in 2019 on the revenue front. EPS should be more or less stable.
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