Verizon Sees Double Digit Earnings Growth While Adding 1.7 Million Wireless Customers in Q4

Verizon Communications reported an 8 percent year-over-year increase in wireless service revenues in the fourth quarter of 2013, which was helped in part by adding 1.7 million mobile subscribers. The wireless carrier is now home to 102.8 million total cellular subscribers, bolstering its position as the leading carrier in the U.S. ahead of AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile.

Big Red can also continue boasting the most expansive 4G LTE network, which is now available to nearly 305 million people in more than 500 markets across the U.S. That's equivalent to 97 percent of the U.S. population and it includes areas served by the company's LTE in Rural America partners, Verizon said.

To take full advantage of Verizon's 4G LTE network, subscribers need a 4G-capable mobile device, of which the wireless carrier added several during Q4. They include the Nokia Lumia 2520, Samsung S4 mini and Galaxy III mini, HTC One Max, and BlackBerry Z30, as well as the Verizon Ellipsis Jetpack and Verizon Ellipsis 7 Tablet, and the Delphi Connect.

Verizon Van

Verizon's total operating revenues for Q4 were $31.1 billion, a 3.4 percent jump compared with the same quarter a year ago. The vast majority of that -- 84 percent -- came from Verizon's wireless, FiOS, and strategic enterprise services. Verizon also announced key investments during the quarter, most notably snatching up Vodafone's 45 percent stake in Verizon Wireless for $130 billion. That deal is expected to close next month.

"Verizon delivered a total return of 18.6 percent to our shareholders in 2013, while attracting more customers than our competitors and improving our financial performance," Lowell McAdam, Verizon chairman and CEO, said in a statement. "This included more than 20 percent year-over-year increases in operating cash flow and EPS. In 2014, we look forward to acquiring sole ownership of Verizon Wireless, the best asset in the global wireless industry, and leveraging all our assets to deliver innovative products to customers and more value to shareholders."

It's also worth pointing out that Q4 was Verizon's fourth consecutive quarter of double-digit earnings growth, which is also the seventh time it's happened in the past eight quarters.

Thumbnail Image Source: Flickr (Robert Scoble)