Verizon Communications Inc.

(New York Stock Exchange)
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Somewhat Bullish +35

AT&T vs. Verizon in 2026: Which Telecom Dividend Stock Is Actually Worth Owning? - 24/7 Wall St.

AI-generated analysis

πŸ“‰ Verizon suffered a major network outage affecting hundreds of thousands of customers, raising concerns about reliability despite its high yield.

πŸ’° Verizon offers a superior current yield of 5.34% with an annualized dividend of $2.76 per share that has been consistently raised.

πŸ“ˆ Verizon Q4 2024 postpaid phone net additions surged 26.5% year over year to 568,000, the best performance in over a decade.

πŸš€ Fixed wireless access revenue for Verizon jumped 51.6% to $611 million with nearly 4.6 million new subscribers.

⚠️ Verizon guided 2025 adjusted EPS growth of only 0% to 3%, indicating essentially flat earnings despite trading near highs.

πŸ’Έ Verizon carries total debt of $144 billion, and the pending Frontier acquisition will add further leverage to the balance sheet.

πŸ“‰ Verizon Business revenue fell 1.5% in Q4 2024, dragging down overall segment performance.

🎯 Analyst consensus target for Verizon is $49.80, which is below the current trading price of $51.18.

πŸ“‰ AT&T offers a lower yield of 3.83% but demonstrated stronger earnings momentum with a Q4 2025 EPS beat of 10.64%.

🌐 AT&T has built 10.4 million fiber connections, an 11.5% year-over-year increase, adding over 1 million subscribers for eight consecutive years.

🀝 42% of AT&T Fiber households also subscribe to AT&T wireless, creating sticky bundled customer relationships.

πŸ“‰ AT&T is actively deleveraging with net debt-to-EBITDA expected to decline to roughly 3x by the end of 2026.

πŸ’° AT&T committed to $45 billion-plus in shareholder returns from 2026 through 2028, including an $18 billion FCF target for 2026.

🎯 Analyst consensus target for AT&T is $29.41, above the current price of $28.97, suggesting upside potential.

πŸ’΅ AT&T trades at just 9x trailing earnings, representing one of the cheaper valuations in the large-cap telecom sector.

Bullish Signals
  • Verizon has raised its quarterly dividend payout from $0.6650 to $0.69 between mid-2024 and mid-2025, demonstrating consistent growth.
  • Verizon achieved its best postpaid phone net additions in over a decade with 568,000 new customers in Q4 2024.
  • Fixed wireless access revenue for Verizon grew rapidly by 51.6% to $611 million in Q4 2024.
  • AT&T significantly beat Q4 2025 adjusted EPS estimates, reporting $0.52 against a consensus of $0.47.
  • AT&T full-year 2025 adjusted EPS grew 8.7% to $2.12, showing solid earnings expansion.
  • AT&T is successfully deleveraging with net debt-to-EBITDA projected to drop to roughly 3x by end of 2026.
  • AT&T has added over 1 million fiber subscribers for eight consecutive years, indicating sustained growth in its fixed network.
  • AT&T plans to return $45 billion-plus to shareholders between 2026 and 2028, signaling confidence in cash flow generation.
  • Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg highlighted strengthening the company through Frontier acquisition, satellite partnerships, and AI enablement.
Risk Factors
  • Verizon recently suffered a major network outage leaving hundreds of thousands of customers without service, damaging its core value proposition.
  • Verizon's 2025 adjusted EPS growth guidance is muted at 0% to 3%, suggesting flat earnings despite high stock prices.
  • Verizon carries significant debt totaling $144 billion, which will increase further with the pending Frontier acquisition.
  • Verizon Business revenue declined 1.5% in Q4 2024, indicating weakness in a key enterprise segment.
  • Analyst consensus target for Verizon is $49.80, which is below the current trading price of $51.18, implying limited upside.
Full Analysis
The article compares Verizon and AT&T as dividend stocks for 2026, highlighting a recent major network outage at Verizon that underscores the importance of reliability. It notes Verizon offers a higher current yield of 5.34% with an annualized dividend of $2.76 per share, which has been consistently raised in mid-2024 and mid-2025. Despite this income appeal, Verizon's 2025 adjusted EPS growth guidance is muted at 0% to 3%, and the stock trades near its 52-week high with a consensus target of $49.80 below the current price of $51.18. Verizon demonstrated strong Q4 2024 performance with postpaid phone net additions rising 26.5% year over year to 568,000 and fixed wireless access revenue jumping 51.6%. However, the company faces challenges including a decline in Verizon Business revenue of 1.5% and significant debt levels of $144 billion, which will increase further with the pending Frontier acquisition. CEO Hans Vestberg expressed optimism regarding future growth driven by spectrum investments, satellite partnerships, and AI enablement. In contrast, AT&T is presented as a stock building value for the future with a lower current yield of 3.83% but stronger earnings momentum. AT&T beat Q4 2025 estimates significantly, reporting adjusted EPS of $0.52 against a $0.47 estimate and full-year 2025 EPS growth of 8.7%. The company is actively deleveraging with net debt-to-EBITDA expected to decline to roughly 3x by end of 2026, while committing over $45 billion in shareholder returns through 2028. AT&T's fiber buildout has expanded connections by 11.5% year over year to 10.4 million, creating sticky bundled customer relationships. The analysis concludes that Verizon pays more income today while AT&T shows a clearer path for long-term growth and valuation expansion. AT&T trades at just 9x trailing earnings with a consensus target of $29.41 above its current price of $28.97. Investors are advised to weigh the immediate high yield of Verizon against AT&T's stronger earnings trajectory, deleveraging progress, and robust fiber growth when evaluating telecom stocks for retirement portfolios.