AT&T And Verizon Communications: A Near-Term Surprise And Long-Term Promise [telecom]

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By Roger S. Conrad

Many investors love to hate the two largest US telecom companies, AT&T and Verizon Communications. But these behemoths beat expectations and posted impressive subscriber additions in the second quarter, sparking a sharp rally in their stock prices.

Verizon Communications gained 614,000 net wireless contracts, reducing churn in the post-paid segment to 0.7 percent. Rolling out an un- limited data plan to rival T-Mobile US' offering helped to reverse a first-quarter decline in the company's wireless subscriber base.