Verizon's Service Outage Affects Image and Finances, Yet Dividend Remains Attractive
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Jan 20 2026
0mins
Should l Buy T?
Source: NASDAQ.COM
- Service Disruption Impact: On January 14, 2026, over 1 million Verizon customers experienced several hours of cellphone service outage, damaging the company's public image and potentially incurring over $20 million in financial losses; however, the long-term growth outlook remains optimistic.
- Acquisition Progress: Verizon announced on January 15, 2026, that it had completed all regulatory approvals necessary to acquire Frontier Communications, with the transaction expected to close on January 20, 2026, expanding its fiber access to nearly 30 million homes and businesses.
- Dividend Attractiveness: Verizon's forward dividend yield exceeds 7%, and the company increased its dividend for the 19th consecutive year in Q4 2025, demonstrating ongoing appeal to income investors despite the challenges posed by the service outage.
- Valuation Advantage: Although the service disruption led to a slight decline in stock price, Verizon's forward P/E ratio now stands at approximately 8.1, significantly lower than AT&T's and T-Mobile's ratios of 10.6 and 15.7, indicating that its stock is more attractive for long-term investors.
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Analyst Views on T
Wall Street analysts forecast T stock price to rise
15 Analyst Rating
8 Buy
5 Hold
2 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 28.010
Low
20.00
Averages
28.27
High
33.00
Current: 28.010
Low
20.00
Averages
28.27
High
33.00
About T
AT&T Inc. is a holding company. The Company is a provider of telecommunications and technology services globally. The Company’s segments include Communications and Latin America. The Communications segment provides wireless and wireline telecom and broadband services to consumers located in the United States and businesses globally. The business units of the Communication segment include Mobility, Business Wireline, and Consumer Wireline. Mobility provides nationwide wireless service and equipment. Business Wireline provides advanced Ethernet-based fiber services, Internet Protocol (IP) Voice and managed professional services, as well as legacy voice and data services and related equipment, to business customers. Consumer Wireline provides broadband services, including fiber connections. Consumer Wireline provides legacy telephony voice communication services. The Latin America segment provides wireless services and equipment in Mexico.
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.
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