Defensive Investment Opportunities in AT&T and Verizon
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 8 hours ago
0mins
Source: CNBC
- Financial Recovery: AT&T reported a free cash flow of $16.6 billion for 2025, with guidance exceeding $18 billion for 2026, alleviating dividend sustainability concerns, while currently offering a 3.85% yield, indicating improved financial health.
- Significant User Growth: Over the past year, AT&T added 1.5 million phone users and 1 million fiber users, bringing total fiber subscribers to 10.4 million, with a 200 basis point increase in convergence rate to 42%, which will help reduce churn and enhance future free cash flow.
- Verizon's Strong Performance: Verizon achieved a net addition of 551,000 consumer subscribers in its 2025 report, with full-year operating revenue reaching $138.2 billion, up 2.5%, indicating potential recovery in a competitive market.
- Enhanced Shareholder Returns: Verizon's board authorized up to $25 billion in share repurchases over three years and raised its dividend for the 20th consecutive year, now yielding 5.62%, ranking 18th in the S&P 500, demonstrating a commitment to shareholders and financial stability.
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Analyst Views on PTC
Wall Street analysts forecast PTC stock price to rise
10 Analyst Rating
6 Buy
4 Hold
0 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 137.610
Low
175.00
Averages
218.00
High
255.00
Current: 137.610
Low
175.00
Averages
218.00
High
255.00
About PTC
PTC Inc. is a global software company that enables industrial and manufacturing companies to digitally transform how they engineer, manufacture, and service physical products. The Company's computer-aided design (CAD) portfolio solutions enable companies to author product data. Its product lifecycle management (PLM) portfolio solutions enable companies to manage product data and orchestrate processes. Its software can be delivered on premises, in the cloud or in a hybrid model. Its PLM products and services include Windchill, ServiceMax, Arena, Codebeamer, Servigistics, and FlexPLM. Its CAD products and services include Creo 3D, Onshape, Vuforia and Arbortext. Its Windchill PLM application suite manages all aspects of the product development lifecycle from concept through service and retirement-by enabling a digital thread of product parts, materials and configuration information.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
Defensive Investment Opportunities in AT&T and Verizon
- Financial Recovery: AT&T reported a free cash flow of $16.6 billion for 2025, with guidance exceeding $18 billion for 2026, alleviating dividend sustainability concerns, while currently offering a 3.85% yield, indicating improved financial health.
- Significant User Growth: Over the past year, AT&T added 1.5 million phone users and 1 million fiber users, bringing total fiber subscribers to 10.4 million, with a 200 basis point increase in convergence rate to 42%, which will help reduce churn and enhance future free cash flow.
- Verizon's Strong Performance: Verizon achieved a net addition of 551,000 consumer subscribers in its 2025 report, with full-year operating revenue reaching $138.2 billion, up 2.5%, indicating potential recovery in a competitive market.
- Enhanced Shareholder Returns: Verizon's board authorized up to $25 billion in share repurchases over three years and raised its dividend for the 20th consecutive year, now yielding 5.62%, ranking 18th in the S&P 500, demonstrating a commitment to shareholders and financial stability.
See More
Dell Stock Breaks Out Again to New Highs
- Performance Recovery: Dell achieved $24.7 billion in revenue for FY2026, a significant increase from zero revenue a few years ago, indicating a strong recovery in AI and data center infrastructure, with FY27 AI server revenue projected to reach $50 billion, a 103% increase, driving overall revenue to $138-142 billion.
- Market Position Reinforcement: By offering customizable AI and data center solutions, Dell has reestablished its critical role in the market, especially amid surging AI demand, positioning itself as an essential 'shovel' for this 'goldmine' by providing comprehensive services and support to customers.
- Technical Breakthrough: After a year of volatility, Dell's stock has successfully broken through the $150-155 resistance level, with current prices well above this mark, indicating a strong upward trend, although the RSI is nearing high levels, suggesting caution for investors chasing strength.
- Risk Management Strategy: For investors, the long-term trend remains positive as long as the stock holds above the 200-day moving average at $130, providing ample consolidation space and ensuring that the larger upward trend is not compromised.
See More
Apple and Alphabet Face Market Challenges
- Apple's Strong Earnings: Apple reported a record revenue of $143.8 billion for Q1 2026, a 16% year-over-year increase, with operating cash flow nearing $54 billion, showcasing robust performance in hardware and software despite market pressures.
- Service Revenue Growth: Apple's services revenue reached $30 billion, up 14% year-over-year, achieving all-time highs across advertising, music, payments, and cloud services, indicating the continued strengthening of its ecosystem lock-in effect.
- Google's Revenue Milestone: Alphabet crossed $400 billion in annual revenue for 2025, with Gemini technology increasingly integrated across major products like Search, Cloud, and YouTube, highlighting its strong growth potential in the AI sector.
- Surge in Capital Expenditure: Google projects capital expenditures for 2026 to be between $175 billion and $185 billion, nearly double the $91.4 billion spent in 2025, which will accelerate depreciation and potentially compress margins, but management signals a long-term investment in AI as a core growth driver.
See More
PTC INC: MIZUHO LOWERS TARGET PRICE FROM $180 TO $160
- Price Adjustment: Mizuhō has reduced its target price for a certain stock from $180 to $160.
- Market Impact: This adjustment may influence investor sentiment and market performance related to the stock in question.
See More
Growth Potential of Casey's General Stores
- Significant Sales Growth: Casey's General Stores reported a 4% increase in same-store sales for the last quarter, with an impressive 8% growth on a two-year stacked basis, indicating strong customer appeal in a competitive convenience store market.
- Optimized Profit Structure: While fuel sales yield a gross margin of only 14%-15%, in-store food and beverage sales boast a 58% margin, allowing internal sales to account for 38% of revenue yet contribute 62% of gross profit, showcasing the efficiency of its business model.
- Strong Market Demand: Management noted that in-store demand destruction does not occur until pump prices hit $5 per gallon, with the current national average at $3.82, placing the company in a favorable market environment that further drives customer traffic and sales growth.
- Clear Expansion Plans: Casey's aims to open 80 new stores in 2026, with expectations of achieving 8%-10% annual EBITDA growth, demonstrating its commitment to sustainable growth through enhanced operational efficiency while maintaining same-store sales growth.
See More
PTC Partners with NVIDIA to Enhance Robotics Design Efficiency
- Integration Innovation: PTC announced the integration of its cloud-native Onshape CAD with NVIDIA's Isaac Sim open simulation framework, achieving seamless CAD-to-physics simulation that significantly reduces engineering time and development errors, thereby enhancing overall design efficiency.
- AI Development Support: This workflow supports physical AI development through robotic training in NVIDIA Isaac Lab, accelerating technological advancements and further driving innovation in the industrial automation sector.
- Real-Time Synchronization: The cloud-native architecture built on Amazon Web Services ensures real-time synchronization of design and simulation, enabling earlier simulation and faster deployment of robotic systems, which enhances market responsiveness.
- Showcase Opportunity: PTC will showcase this workflow at the NVIDIA GTC conference in San Jose from March 16 to 19, 2026, which is expected to attract industry attention and foster potential collaborations.
See More
Defensive Investment Opportunities in AT&T and Verizon
- Financial Recovery: AT&T reported a free cash flow of $16.6 billion for 2025, with guidance exceeding $18 billion for 2026, alleviating dividend sustainability concerns, while currently offering a 3.85% yield, indicating improved financial health.
- Significant User Growth: Over the past year, AT&T added 1.5 million phone users and 1 million fiber users, bringing total fiber subscribers to 10.4 million, with a 200 basis point increase in convergence rate to 42%, which will help reduce churn and enhance future free cash flow.
- Verizon's Strong Performance: Verizon achieved a net addition of 551,000 consumer subscribers in its 2025 report, with full-year operating revenue reaching $138.2 billion, up 2.5%, indicating potential recovery in a competitive market.
- Enhanced Shareholder Returns: Verizon's board authorized up to $25 billion in share repurchases over three years and raised its dividend for the 20th consecutive year, now yielding 5.62%, ranking 18th in the S&P 500, demonstrating a commitment to shareholders and financial stability.
See More
Dell Stock Breaks Out Again to New Highs
- Performance Recovery: Dell achieved $24.7 billion in revenue for FY2026, a significant increase from zero revenue a few years ago, indicating a strong recovery in AI and data center infrastructure, with FY27 AI server revenue projected to reach $50 billion, a 103% increase, driving overall revenue to $138-142 billion.
- Market Position Reinforcement: By offering customizable AI and data center solutions, Dell has reestablished its critical role in the market, especially amid surging AI demand, positioning itself as an essential 'shovel' for this 'goldmine' by providing comprehensive services and support to customers.
- Technical Breakthrough: After a year of volatility, Dell's stock has successfully broken through the $150-155 resistance level, with current prices well above this mark, indicating a strong upward trend, although the RSI is nearing high levels, suggesting caution for investors chasing strength.
- Risk Management Strategy: For investors, the long-term trend remains positive as long as the stock holds above the 200-day moving average at $130, providing ample consolidation space and ensuring that the larger upward trend is not compromised.
See More
Apple and Alphabet Face Market Challenges
- Apple's Strong Earnings: Apple reported a record revenue of $143.8 billion for Q1 2026, a 16% year-over-year increase, with operating cash flow nearing $54 billion, showcasing robust performance in hardware and software despite market pressures.
- Service Revenue Growth: Apple's services revenue reached $30 billion, up 14% year-over-year, achieving all-time highs across advertising, music, payments, and cloud services, indicating the continued strengthening of its ecosystem lock-in effect.
- Google's Revenue Milestone: Alphabet crossed $400 billion in annual revenue for 2025, with Gemini technology increasingly integrated across major products like Search, Cloud, and YouTube, highlighting its strong growth potential in the AI sector.
- Surge in Capital Expenditure: Google projects capital expenditures for 2026 to be between $175 billion and $185 billion, nearly double the $91.4 billion spent in 2025, which will accelerate depreciation and potentially compress margins, but management signals a long-term investment in AI as a core growth driver.
See More
PTC INC: MIZUHO LOWERS TARGET PRICE FROM $180 TO $160
- Price Adjustment: Mizuhō has reduced its target price for a certain stock from $180 to $160.
- Market Impact: This adjustment may influence investor sentiment and market performance related to the stock in question.
See More
Growth Potential of Casey's General Stores
- Significant Sales Growth: Casey's General Stores reported a 4% increase in same-store sales for the last quarter, with an impressive 8% growth on a two-year stacked basis, indicating strong customer appeal in a competitive convenience store market.
- Optimized Profit Structure: While fuel sales yield a gross margin of only 14%-15%, in-store food and beverage sales boast a 58% margin, allowing internal sales to account for 38% of revenue yet contribute 62% of gross profit, showcasing the efficiency of its business model.
- Strong Market Demand: Management noted that in-store demand destruction does not occur until pump prices hit $5 per gallon, with the current national average at $3.82, placing the company in a favorable market environment that further drives customer traffic and sales growth.
- Clear Expansion Plans: Casey's aims to open 80 new stores in 2026, with expectations of achieving 8%-10% annual EBITDA growth, demonstrating its commitment to sustainable growth through enhanced operational efficiency while maintaining same-store sales growth.
See More
PTC Partners with NVIDIA to Enhance Robotics Design Efficiency
- Integration Innovation: PTC announced the integration of its cloud-native Onshape CAD with NVIDIA's Isaac Sim open simulation framework, achieving seamless CAD-to-physics simulation that significantly reduces engineering time and development errors, thereby enhancing overall design efficiency.
- AI Development Support: This workflow supports physical AI development through robotic training in NVIDIA Isaac Lab, accelerating technological advancements and further driving innovation in the industrial automation sector.
- Real-Time Synchronization: The cloud-native architecture built on Amazon Web Services ensures real-time synchronization of design and simulation, enabling earlier simulation and faster deployment of robotic systems, which enhances market responsiveness.
- Showcase Opportunity: PTC will showcase this workflow at the NVIDIA GTC conference in San Jose from March 16 to 19, 2026, which is expected to attract industry attention and foster potential collaborations.
See More
