New York, Jan 14, 2026, 1:14 PM EST — Regular session
- Verizon reported it is addressing a problem impacting wireless voice and data services.
- After falling for three straight days, VZ shares bounced back, climbing roughly 1.8% in midday trading.
- Investors are gearing up for the Jan. 30 earnings report, zeroing in on network performance and costs.
Verizon Communications’ stock climbed Wednesday despite a service disruption that knocked out wireless voice and data for some users. The company said engineers were actively trying to “identify and solve the issue quickly.” WCIV
This outage hits a stock usually seen as a steady income play—until it suddenly isn’t. Wireless customers rely on network reliability, and churn—the rate at which they leave—can spike quickly if issues persist.
The outage comes just ahead of quarterly results, a time when execs and analysts usually dig into service quality, promotions, and customer churn. Verizon hasn’t disclosed the cause of the disruption or given a timeline for when service will be fully restored.
According to a Reuters report, Downdetector recorded over 170,000 reports of Verizon service issues. The outage-tracking site compiles user complaints and other data, which means the actual scale of the disruption could be higher or lower.
Verizon shares climbed roughly 1.8% to $39.70 around midday, after starting the session at $39.12 and fluctuating between $39.04 and $39.78.
Shares of AT&T climbed around 1.4%, while T-Mobile edged up near 0.7%.
Verizon slipped 2.1% Tuesday, finishing at $39.01, lagging behind an already weak day for U.S. equities and pushing its recent losing run further.
A filing this week outlined tweaks to a $30 million target-value performance stock unit award linked to Daniel H. Schulman. The grant is scheduled for the first quarter and vests, if achieved, on Dec. 31, 2027. Half the award depends on adjusted earnings per share targets; the other half hinges on total shareholder return — stock gains plus dividends — compared to a peer group.
Verizon plans to release its fourth-quarter earnings on Friday, Jan. 30, with a webcast set for 8 a.m. ET, the company confirmed.
Outages can escalate quickly, triggering service credits, increased call-center expenses, and even regulatory scrutiny. The Federal Communications Commission has already looked into Verizon following a U.S. network disruption, though the carrier later confirmed service was restored.
Investors are closely monitoring updates on the restoration and any clues about the incident’s scale, as well as if it starts affecting subscriber trends before Verizon’s Jan. 30 earnings report.
