T-Mobile US, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides mobile communications services in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands. The company offers voice, messaging, and data services to customers in the postpaid, prepaid, and wholesale and other services. It also provides wireless devices, including smartphones, wearables, tablets, home broadband routers, and other mobile communication devices, as well as wireless devices and accessories; financing through equipment installment plans; reinsurance for device insurance policies and extended warranty contracts; leasing through JUMP! On Demand; and High Speed Internet services. In addition, the company offers services, devices, and accessories under the T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile brands through its owned and operated retail stores, T-Mobile app and customer care channels, and its websites. It also sells its devices to dealers and other third-party distributors for resale through independent third-party retail outlets and various third-party websites. The company was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington.

T-Mobile US, Inc.

Among the underlying components of the Russell 3000 index, we saw noteworthy options trading volume today in T-Mobile US Inc (Symbol: TMUS), where a total of 33,325 contracts have traded so far, representing approximately 3.3 million underlying shares. That amounts to about 65.5% of TMUS's average daily trading volume over the past month of 5.1 million shares. Particularly high volume was seen for the $190 strike call option expiring January 30, 2026, with 11,387 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 1.1 million underlying shares of TMUS. Below is a chart showing TMUS's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $190 strike highlighted in orange:
Lumen Technologies Inc (Symbol: LUMN) options are showing a volume of 65,823 contracts thus far today. That number of contracts represents approximately 6.6 million underlying shares, working out to a sizeable 60.8% of LUMN's average daily trading volume over the past month, of 10.8 million shares. Especially high volume was seen for the $10 strike call option expiring January 30, 2026, with 22,475 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 2.2 million underlying shares of LUMN. Below is a chart showing LUMN's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $10 strike highlighted in orange:
And Coupang Inc (Symbol: CPNG) saw options trading volume of 127,078 contracts, representing approximately 12.7 million underlying shares or approximately 60.3% of CPNG's average daily trading volume over the past month, of 21.1 million shares. Particularly high volume was seen for the $18 strike put option expiring May 15, 2026, with 20,400 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 2.0 million underlying shares of CPNG. Below is a chart showing CPNG's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $18 strike highlighted in orange:
For the various different available expirations for TMUS options, LUMN options, or CPNG options, visit StockOptionsChannel.com.
Also see:
OVV Insider Buying
Institutional Holders of BMRG
ASC Options Chain
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Notable Tuesday Option Activity: TMUS, LUMN, CPNG

AT&T, Inc. T recently introduced its first end-to-end IoT solution, the AT&T Connected Spaces, in AWS Marketplace. The comprehensive solution suite offers several features that simplify IoT adoption for enterprises.
By combining pre-integrated wireless sensors with a secure cloud platform, it offers an intuitive dashboard, enabling businesses to access actionable insights. Its plug-and-play deployment ensures seamless installation. It empowers businesses to track critical metrics such as temperature, humidity, motion, energy usage and security in real time.
Traditionally, businesses looking to develop an end-to-end IoT ecosystem had to rely on multiple vendors for different aspects, from sensors, connectivity and cloud integration, to analytics. This makes the process complex and slow. AT&T’s end-to-end offering and collaboration with AWS will significantly streamline the process. This is particularly game-changing for small and medium-sized businesses that often lack the resources and reach to develop an IoT ecosystem for their businesses.
AT&T's solution offers actionable insights that will allow businesses to optimize resource allocation and utilization, improve operational uptime and enhance end-user experience. As enterprises upscale their businesses, AT&T Connected Devices allows them to seamlessly expand their IoT devices, ensure reliable performance with longer battery life and extended range. With such leading-edge capability, the solution can support a wide range of use cases across several sectors such as retail, hospitality, healthcare, warehousing and property management. Its listing on AWS market place significantly increase its accessibility to customers.
Per a report from Fortune Business Insights, the global IoT market is valued at $864.32 billion in 2025. It is expected to grow at a 24.3% compound annual growth rate, reaching $4,062.34 billion in 2032. AT&T is expanding its portfolio to capitalize on this emerging trend.
How Are Competitors Faring?
AT&T faces competition from Verizon Communications, Inc. VZ and T-Mobile, US, Inc. TMUS in the IoT connectivity space. The Verizon ThingSpace platform supports businesses at various stages of IoT development, from prototyping to enterprise-ready. The solution also offers various network technologies that cater to the various requirements of IoT devices. Kodiak AI, an leading edge autonomous driving technology provider, recently opted to use the solution. Kodiak is leveraging Verizon’s advanced and improved 5G connectivity and IoT telematics for real-time communication, remote monitoring, software updates and centralized fleet management. Verizon is also expanding its collaboration with various IoT OEMs to ensure their device compatibility with the Verizon network.
T-Mobile boasts a robust portfolio of IoT network technologies that include Narrowband IoT, LTE-M, LTE and 5G. The technologies support a wide range of use cases such as smart meters, industrial sensors, fleet management, asset tracking and many other applications. T-Mobile is collaborating with Deutsche Telekom drive advancement in IoT technology.
T’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
AT&T has declined 3.7% over the past year compared with the industry’s decline of 9.3%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, AT&T trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 10.35, below the industry tally of 11.14.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Earnings estimates for 2025 have increased 0.49% to $2.06 over the past 60 days, while those for 2026 have remained unchanged.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
AT&T currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

T Brings IoT Solutions to AWS Marketplace: Will it Boost Prospects?

Verizon Communications Inc. VZ is scheduled to report fourth-quarter 2025 earnings on Jan. 30, 2026. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for sales and earnings is pegged at $35.94 billion and $1.06 per share, respectively. Earnings estimates for VZ have declined marginally from $4.70 per share to $4.68 for 2025 and from $4.85 per share to $4.81 for 2026 over the past 60 days, owing to a challenging macroeconomic environment.
VZ Estimate Trend
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Earnings Surprise History
The communication services provider has a solid trailing four-quarter earnings surprise history, having exceeded expectations on each occasion. It delivered a four-quarter earnings surprise of 2.37%, on average. In the last reported quarter, the company pulled off an earnings surprise of 1.68%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Earnings Whispers
Our proven model predicts an earnings beat for Verizon for the fourth quarter. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an earnings beat. That is not the case here. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
Verizon currently has an ESP of -1.99% with a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Factors Shaping Upcoming Results
Verizon is offering various mix-and-match pricing in wireless and home broadband plans, which have historically led to increased adoption of 5G devices and premium unlimited plans. In addition to various bundle plans for varied streaming services, it offers customers greater control and flexibility over their preferred content selections, allowing them to pay only for what they want.
During the to-be-reported quarter, Verizon launched 5G Network Slice - Enhanced Internet. This leading-edge fixed wireless Internet solution gives customers supercharged uplink capacity and high performance with no data caps. Verizon’s new 5G network slicing product offers 200 Mbps downlink and 45 Mbps uplink speed, ensuring reliable data transmission for AI inference models, computer vision and machine learning applications. Consistent connectivity and high throughput effectively support cloud-based applications and large file transfer in real time. This is likely to have translated into healthy customer additions and higher revenues from the Consumer segment.
During the reported quarter, Verizon completed the deployment of a 100G dedicated optical ring at Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE). The optical ring connects four key sites of MSE with ultra-high bandwidth, seamless integration across venues, strong network connectivity and faster and reliable broadcast workflow. It will act as the backbone of the core broadcast and content creation process of MSE, significantly boosting network resiliency and optimizing operations ahead of the 2025–26 NHL/NBA seasons. These are likely to have translated into incremental revenues in the Business segment.
However, adverse foreign currency translations, infrastructure investments and high operating costs for 5G deployments are likely to have led to soft margins in the quarter. Verizon has announced a three-year price lock guarantee for all its myPlan and myHome network plans. This ensures that the core monthly plan price for calling, data and texting will not change in the next three-year period, excluding taxes, fees and perks. Although this customer-centric model will entice new customers, the promotional offers and lucrative discounts are expected to have weighed on margins. In addition, the company’s wireline division is struggling with persistent losses in access lines owing to competitive pressure from the voice-over-Internet protocol (VoIP) service providers and aggressive triple-play (voice, data and video) offerings by cable companies.
Verizon also recorded high capital expenditures for the launch and continued build-out of its 5G Ultra-Wideband network, deployment of significant fiber assets across the country and Intelligent Edge Network architecture upgrades.
Price Performance
Over the past year, VZ has lost 2% compared with the industry’s decline of 9.4%. It has outperformed its peers like AT&T Inc. T and T-Mobile US Inc. TMUS over this period. While AT&T declined 3.8%, T-Mobile was down 15%.
One-Year VZ Stock Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Key Valuation Metric
From a valuation standpoint, Verizon appears attractive relative to the industry and is trading below its mean. Going by the price/earnings ratio, the company shares currently trade at 8.2 forward earnings, lower than 11.14 for the industry and the stock’s mean of 8.81.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Investment Considerations
By investing steadily in fiber infrastructure and pioneering new technologies, Verizon is well-positioned to bridge the digital divide and enhance the connectivity landscape nationwide. This is likely to translate into solid subscriber growth, higher average revenue per user and increased broadband and fiber penetration.
However, high capital expenditures due to the continued expansion of 5G mmWave in new and existing markets, the densification of the 4G LTE wireless network and the deployment of the fiber infrastructure are likely to have eroded margins. An ongoing shift from traditional linear video to over-the-top offerings, along with a competitive and almost saturated U.S. wireless market, is expected to weigh on the company’s revenues in the future. Moreover, Verizon is likely to be affected by the demand softness in the Business Segment.
End Note
Verizon’s effective customer-focused strategy, combined with a strong 5G network, is driving momentum in the wireless vertical. However, intense competition and weakness in the Business segment are concerns. Macroeconomic challenges remain a drag. With declining earnings estimates, the stock is witnessing a negative investor perception. Consequently, it might not be prudent to bet on the stock at the moment.
However, a single quarter’s results are not so important for long-term stakeholders, and investors already owning the stock could stay put. In addition, an attractive valuation and focus on the deployment of a cloud-native, container-based, virtualized architecture for higher flexibility, scalability and cost efficiency across its network will benefit it in the long term.
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From inception in 2012 through November, 2025, the Zacks Top 10 Stocks gained +2,530.8%, more than QUADRUPLING the S&P 500’s +570.3%.
Sheraz has combed through 4,400 companies covered by the Zacks Rank and handpicked the best 10 to buy and hold in 2026. You can still be among the first to see these just-released stocks with enormous potential.
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AT&T Inc. (T) : Free Stock Analysis Report
T-Mobile US, Inc. (TMUS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Verizon Stock Before Q4 Earnings: A Sensible Buy or Risky Move?

Key Points
The iconic Dow Jones Industrial Average has evolved from an index dominated by industrial stocks in the late 1800s to one that's now composed of 30 diverse, multinational, and time-tested companies.
Everything from Verizon's share price to its minimal growth rate points to it being shown the door by S&P Dow Jones Indices.
Verizon's likely replacement strikes the perfect balance between tech and communications, with a virtual monopoly thrown in the mix.
On May 26, 2026, the iconic Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) will celebrate its 130th anniversary since its official inception.
When it was initially formed, the Dow was an index dominated by one dozen industrial stocks. But over the last century and change, it's evolved into an encompassing index composed of 30 diverse, multinational, and time-tested companies.
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But these components aren't static. Since the Dow Jones Industrial Average is a share price-weighted index, companies that underperform over long periods, or those that lose relevancy, either within the index or U.S. economy, are eventually removed and replaced.
The index has undergone nearly five dozen changes since 1896, a couple of which are recognized as nothing more than official company name changes or a public company merging with an existing Dow component. Most of these adjustments involve laggards being booted from the Dow in favor of companies with better long-term growth prospects that are more representative of the U.S. economy.
In 2026, I believe we'll witness the 60th change in the Dow Jones Industrial Average in 130 years, with telecom titan Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) getting the unceremonious heave-ho and a trillion-dollar juggernaut replacing it.
Prediction: Verizon gets booted from the Dow in the new year
Verizon first entered the ageless Dow Jones Industrial Average in April 2004, replacing its primary rival, AT&T. The proliferation of wireless cellular service, coupled with cellphones becoming something of a basic necessity that consumers and businesses were unwilling to live without, offered a compelling long-term growth story.
But several issues strongly suggest Verizon is a candidate to be shown the door in 2026.
To begin with, Verizon stock ended the Jan. 21 trading session at just $39.24 per share. Whereas the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite are market-cap-weighted indexes, Dow points are determined entirely by share price and the Dow divisor. In other words, the higher a company's nominal share price, the more influence it has within the Dow.
Only four Dow components have a share price below $111, with Verizon's nominal share price notably lower than the next-closest Dow-30 stock, Nike, whose shares closed at $65.41 on Jan. 21. Verizon only accounts for roughly 241 out of the Dow's 49,077 points.
Another strike against Verizon is that its shares have gone virtually nowhere, excluding dividend payments, since its inclusion in the index on April 8, 2004. Based on data from YCharts, Verizon shares have gained just 17% in almost 22 years.
The third and final knock against Verizon is its long-term growth potential. Although it has an ultra-high yield of 7% and generates predictable operating cash flow with a relatively low wireless churn rate, there's little hope of an annualized growth rate higher than the low-to-mid single digits, given already high domestic wireless and broadband saturation. It's a stalwart communications company that isn't necessarily representative of today's economy.
Out with the old and in with the new
Keeping in mind that S&P Dow Jones Indices -- the entity responsible for making adjustments to Wall Street's iconic index -- would want a replacement with a three-digit nominal share price that's a key player in one or more aspects of the U.S./global economy, the most logical replacement for Verizon in the Dow is Google parent and trillion-dollar club member, Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL)(NASDAQ: GOOG).
Mind you, several candidates would make sense. T-Mobile would represent a lateral shift that offers a faster long-term growth rate when compared to Verizon. Meanwhile, social media titan Meta Platforms would bring significant exposure to the advertising industry into the Dow. However, Meta's $600-plus share price may be too extreme on the high end for inclusion (Meta has never split its stock), and T-Mobile's operating model may be too similar to Verizon's. It could be in the same boat as Verizon a decade from now.
Alphabet strikes the perfect balance between tech and communications.
On the one hand, Alphabet generated 72.5% of its net sales during the September-ended quarter from advertising. This includes its Google search engine, which accounts for a virtual monopoly in global internet search share, as well as YouTube, the second-most visited social site on the planet. Since advertising is cyclical, Alphabet would serve as a valuable barometer of advertising health for the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
However, Alphabet is also a cloud-computing and artificial intelligence (AI) pioneer. Its cloud infrastructure service platform, Google Cloud, ranks third worldwide in total cloud infrastructure service spend. This high-margin operating segment is incorporating generative AI solutions that are further accelerating its 30%-plus sales growth rate.
In addition to Alphabet's two-pronged growth approach, the company's share price performance is likely to speak to (if not scream at) S&P Dow Jones Indices. Since its initial public offering in August 2004, Alphabet's shares have increased at a compound annual rate of more than 25%. This is the type of measurable growth that can lift the Dow above and beyond 50,000.
Furthermore, Alphabet conducted a historic 20-for-1 forward stock split in July 2022. This split reduced its share price from around $2,200 to approximately $110. Before its split, Alphabet had no chance of joining the Dow, as its ultra-high share price would have dominated the index. With its shares now hovering around $330, it would slot in at the ninth-most influential company in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Among Wall Street's five most valuable public companies, Alphabet is the only one that's currently not part of the Dow. It's my belief this is going to change before 2026 comes to a close.
Should you buy stock in Alphabet right now?
Before you buy stock in Alphabet, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Alphabet wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $464,439!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,150,455!*
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*Stock Advisor returns as of January 26, 2026.
Sean Williams has positions in AT&T, Alphabet, and Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Meta Platforms, and Nike. The Motley Fool recommends T-Mobile US and Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Prediction: Verizon Will Be Booted From the Dow Jones Industrial Average in 2026 and Replaced by This Trillion-Dollar Club Member

Key Points
Promising test results have Iridium on track for a commercial launch in 2026.
Iridium's 5G services could be enticing to telecom titans like T-Mobile.
Shares of Iridium Communications (NASDAQ: IRDM) climbed on Thursday after the satellite services provider announced a successful test of its NTN Direct network.
By the close of trading, Iridium's stock price was up more than 11%.
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The future of connectivity
The test included two-way message transmission over Iridium's low-Earth orbit satellite network. The space-based, direct-to-device platform could be among the first to support wireless communications between Internet of Things (IoT) devices worldwide.
Iridium hopes to partner with telecommunications companies like T-Mobile to enable them to extend service beyond their traditional land-based networks, thereby eliminating coverage gaps. Iridium also plans to work with device makers to help them more easily connect to its 5G voice, data, and navigation services.
"This milestone reinforces why mobile network operators and chipset makers are engaging with Iridium," CEO Matt Desch said in a press release. "We offer a low-risk, globally coordinated, and operational network designed to complement what they do, not compete with what they do."
On track to debut in 2026
Iridium is targeting a commercial launch later this year.
"Iridium NTN Direct is no longer a concept, it's on the air, sending messages, and now being rigorously tested to meet our elite performance standards," Desch said.
Should you buy stock in Iridium Communications right now?
Before you buy stock in Iridium Communications, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Iridium Communications wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $460,340!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,123,789!*
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*Stock Advisor returns as of January 22, 2026.
Joe Tenebruso has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends T-Mobile US. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Why Iridium Communications Stock Soared Today

Looking today at week-over-week shares outstanding changes among the universe of ETFs covered at ETF Channel, one standout is the Neos Nasdaq-100 High Income ETF (Symbol: QQQI) where we have detected an approximate $343.9 million dollar inflow -- that's a 4.6% increase week over week in outstanding units (from 140,790,000 to 147,230,000). Among the largest underlying components of QQQI, in trading today T-Mobile US Inc (Symbol: TMUS) is down about 0.5%, PepsiCo Inc (Symbol: PEP) is down about 1.5%, and Qualcomm Inc (Symbol: QCOM) is higher by about 1.2%. For a complete list of holdings, visit the QQQI Holdings page » The chart below shows the one year price performance of QQQI, versus its 200 day moving average:
Looking at the chart above, QQQI's low point in its 52 week range is $41.1701 per share, with $55.93 as the 52 week high point — that compares with a last trade of $53.19. Comparing the most recent share price to the 200 day moving average can also be a useful technical analysis technique -- learn more about the 200 day moving average ».
Exchange traded funds (ETFs) trade just like stocks, but instead of ''shares'' investors are actually buying and selling ''units''. These ''units'' can be traded back and forth just like stocks, but can also be created or destroyed to accommodate investor demand. Each week we monitor the week-over-week change in shares outstanding data, to keep a lookout for those ETFs experiencing notable inflows (many new units created) or outflows (many old units destroyed). Creation of new units will mean the underlying holdings of the ETF need to be purchased, while destruction of units involves selling underlying holdings, so large flows can also impact the individual components held within ETFs.
Also see:
Funds Holding SBLX
BOW YTD Return
GLDD market cap history
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

QQQI, TMUS, PEP, QCOM: Large Inflows Detected at ETF

Key Points
Verizon's service outage last week hurt the company's public image and cost it some money.
However, the company's long-term prospects and great dividend program haven't changed.
Verizon's stock is also slightly more attractive as a result of the service disruption.
Over 1 million Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) customers lost cellphone service for several hours on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. The outage didn't just hurt the telecom giant's public image; it's also impacting Verizon financially. The company announced last week that it's offering a $20 credit to anyone who experienced problems.
With this kind of bad news, you might think it's best for investors to stay away from Verizon for a while. I disagree. Here's why I just bought the stock despite Verizon's highly publicized outage.
Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue »
What hasn't changed with Verizon
The bottom line is that Verizon's long-term growth prospects haven't changed. All the reasons to consider buying the stock before last week remain intact. Those reasons include the company's improving free cash flow and the likely growth coming by the end of the decade from the introduction of 6G wireless networks.
They also include a potentially transformative deal. Verizon announced on Jan. 15, 2026, that all regulatory approvals required to acquire Frontier Communications (NASDAQ: FYBR) had been completed. The transaction is expected to close on Jan. 20, 2026. Verizon's acquisition of Fronter is set to expand the company's fiber access to nearly 30 million homes and businesses.
Verizon CEO Dan Schulman won't alter his plans to reshape the company's business, either. Schulman said in Verizon's October 2025 quarterly update that he intends to "aggressively transform" the company's culture, cost structure, and financial profile.
For income investors, Verizon's dividend remains highly attractive. The telecom leader's forward dividend yield tops 7%. In the fourth quarter of 2025, Verizon increased its dividend for the 19th consecutive year.
What has changed (a little)
Granted, Verizon's costs from last week's outage could exceed the $20 million or so the company will incur in credits to affected customers. Some could choose to switch wireless carriers as a result of the incident. However, if history is any guide, the impact on Verizon shouldn't be long-lasting.
For example, on Feb. 22, 2024, thousands of AT&T (NYSE: T) customers lost cell service. Since then, AT&T's share price has risen by around 40%. Any negative effect on the communications stock was only temporary. I expect the same will be true for Verizon with its recent service disruption.
Verizon's share price dipped last week following disruptions to its cell service. However, the slight decline made the stock's valuation even more attractive. Verizon's forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio now stands at roughly 8.1. That multiple is well below AT&T's and T-Mobile's (NASDAQ: TMUS) forward P/E ratios of 10.6 and 15.7, respectively.
I think the net impact of Verizon's outage is that its stock is actually a better pick for long-term investors. If the company has further service problems, that could change. Assuming that doesn't happen, though, I'll probably buy even more Verizon shares later this year.
Should you buy stock in Verizon Communications right now?
Before you buy stock in Verizon Communications, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Verizon Communications wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $474,578!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,141,628!*
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*Stock Advisor returns as of January 20, 2026.
Keith Speights has positions in Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool recommends T-Mobile US and Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Verizon's Outage Outraged Over 1 Million Customers. Why I Just Bought the Stock Anyway.

Lumen Technologies, Inc.’s LUMN shares have surged 18% in the past year, outpacing the S&P 500 composite’s rise of 4.3% and contrasting sharply with the Diversified Communications Services sector’s decline of 4.5%.
Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Gains are higher than some of its peers, such as Verizon Communications VZ, AT&T T and T-Mobile US, Inc. TMUS. Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile have lost 4.6%, 10% and 19%, respectively over the same time frame.
Once written off as a structurally declining telecom asset, LUMN has made a comeback through its AI pivot, balance sheet repair and improved operating execution.
Closing at $8.45 as of yesterday’s trading session, LUMN stock is currently trading below its 52-week high of $11.95. Is there meaningful upside in 2026?
Should investors remain invested?
Let us analyze the company's fundamentals, opportunities and risks in detail to determine if it is worth considering for investment.
LUMN: What’s Driving the Run
The explosive growth of AI workloads is driving demand for low-latency, high-bandwidth fiber connectivity between data centers, cloud regions and enterprise clients, resulting in increasing demand for Lumen's Private Connectivity Fabric (“PCF”) and network-as-a-service (NaaS) solutions. Driven by significant AI-fueled connectivity demand, Lumen has secured a total of $10 billion in PCF deals at the end of the third quarter.
Investments in PCF are expected to create future revenue streams and strengthen Lumen’s position as a relevant infrastructure player going ahead. Management added that given the $10 billion in hand, the existing O&M run-rate PCF business will yield $400-$500 million of recurring revenues exiting 2028.
Lumen Technologies, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
On the NaaS front, Lumen highlighted that it has surpassed 1,500 customers for the platform, while active customers were up 32% sequentially on the last earnings call. Fabric ports deployed were up 30% and the number of services sold surged 36% sequentially. It recently unveiled Internet on Demand, or IoD Offnet, and expects this solution to boost market reach by 100x.
Lumen also noted that its connected ecosystem strategy was “off to a great start” with recent deals with Palantir, Commvault and QTS. Management expects digital capabilities, including NaaS, Edge Solutions, Security and the Connected Ecosystem, to deliver between $500 million and $600 million of incremental revenues exiting 2028. Lumen is upbeat about its new business model, the PxQ model, which has the fabric port at its core. It is planning to extend this model with the launch of Project Berkeley. Berkely is a pre-provisioned cross-carrier fabric port that can power first and third-party services on and off-net, AI-ready.
Focus on Cost Discipline
Lumen continues to progress with its turnaround and is striving to boost operational efficiency. The company is anticipating $1 billion in cost savings by the end of 2027 through planned infrastructure simplification across the network, product portfolio and IT. It is also leveraging AI tech to drive intelligence and automation. Lumen recently completed phase one of its ERP implementation and expects to complete phase two by next year. In the current year, Lumen expects $350 million of run-rate cost benefit compared with $250 million already achieved in the third quarter.
Balance Sheet Repair
Lumen is focused on deleveraging and it is highly optimistic about selling Mass Markets' fiber-to-the-home business (including Quantum Fiber, across 11 states) to AT&T for $5.75 billion in cash. The transaction is now expected to close in early 2026, pending regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
It is aimed at accelerating investment and focusing on core enterprise capabilities while improving the balance sheet. The company is planning to pay down $4.8 billion in super priority debt at close, boosting annual interest expense savings up to $535 million. In the third quarter, Lumen completed an additional $2.4 billion debt refinancing and subsequent term loan repricing, reducing annual interest expense by $135 million.
LUMN’s Discounted Valuation
From a valuation perspective, LUMN is trading at a massive discount. Going by its trailing 12-month price-to-sales ratio, LUMN is trading at a multiple of 0.74, much below the industry’s ratio of 1.53.
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In comparison, Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile are trading at multiples of 1.17, 1.31 and 2.21, respectively, compared with the Wireless National Industry’s multiple of 1.71.
Risks to Monitor
However, no investment is without risks.
As Lumen shifts toward newer growth products like fiber and cloud-based offerings, the secular headwinds in the legacy business will continue to prove a strain on the top-line expansion, at least in the near term. EBITDA in 2025 is expected to be below the levels of 2024, owing to the investments in transformation, along with higher startup costs for PCF sales and legacy revenue declines.
Moreover, stiff competition in AI, high costs and massive debt are concerns. As of Sept. 30, 2025, the company had $2.4 billion in cash and cash equivalents with $17.578 billion of long-term debt compared with the respective figures of $1.6 billion and $17.565 billion as of March 31, 2025. It expects to still have a massive $13 billion in debt following the closing of the AT&T transaction.
LUMN: Stay Invested
Lumen is navigating a transformative period, aligning itself with the massive growth of AI, cloud computing and digital-telecom services. Increasing PCF demand and deals with tech giants are creating a strong foundation for growth. Expansion into NaaS markets is an additional tailwind.
However, legacy declines persist and leverage remains elevated.
At present, LUMN carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Investors already having a position in this stock can stay invested to capture potential AI upside, but need to closely monitor execution. New investors should wait for a better entry point.
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Lumen Stock Up 18% in the Past 3 Months: Stay Invested or Exit?

Key Points
Uber has sold off at a time when an emerging technology could supercharge its business.
AT&T's valuation and renewed focus on its core business could make it a market-beating growth and income stock.
Investors looking for "cheap" stocks may find today's market less accommodating. The S&P 500 average P/E ratio is above 31, and while that is not a record high, it has risen significantly from the 20 average at the low point of the 2022 bear market.
Fortunately, the elevated valuations do not mean that all stocks are expensive. Even with a budget of around $1,000, investors stand a good chance of driving market-beating returns in these two stocks.
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1. Uber Technologies
Rideshare leader Uber Technologies (NYSE: UBER) presents a unique opportunity for investors. The company leads the globe in the ridesharing industry that it has helped spearhead. Also, while DoorDash leads food delivery in the U.S., Uber's delivery segment alone drives more global revenue than DoorDash.
However, the opportunity (and the risk) appears to hinge on autonomous driving. Since Uber already has a rideshare platform, it is probably more cost-effective for autonomous driving companies to turn to Uber's platform rather than build one from scratch. This could send revenue soaring as more rides occur without a human driver.
Admittedly, that strategy comes with risks, namely that we do not know the degree to which autonomous driving will ultimately replace human drivers. Although the technology's backers hope autonomous driving will make the roads safer, time will tell to what degree it succeeds.
Nonetheless, that situation places Uber in a sweet spot as it is likely to succeed with or without self-driving cars. In the first nine months of 2025, its nearly $37.7 billion in revenues surged 18% higher compared to year-ago levels, and this happened with humans doing almost all of the driving.
Moreover, its $9.8 billion in net income in the first three quarters of 2025 rose from the $3 billion during the same period in 2024. Indeed, Uber got a one-time boost from a $4.3 billion income tax benefit. That skewed its P/E ratio down to 10.
Still, at a forward P/E ratio of 20, Uber stock is still far cheaper than the S&P 500 average. Also, at about $85.40 per share as of the time of this writing, investors can afford six shares for around $512, a nice starting investment in a company driving the future of driving.
2. AT&T
Admittedly, a recommendation of AT&T (NYSE: T) may sound strange given its recent history. While it is only one of three companies providing essential wireless and fiber communication services, it spends heavily to compete with Verizon Communications and T-Mobile US.
Furthermore, it overpaid for DirecTV and Warner Bros., eventually spinning off both entities at a massive loss. This forced AT&T to abandon a 35-year streak of dividend increases.
Today, the company has returned to a singular focus of offering communication services. To that end, it spent $5.75 billion to acquire Lumen's mass market fiber business. It also bought Echostar's wireless spectrum for $23 billion, giving AT&T the right to use some prime RF frequencies that will probably improve its service quality.
Investors may not feel comfortable with the fact that those purchases have taken its total debt to $139.5 billion, a high level considering AT&T's book value of $127 billion.
Nonetheless, the aforementioned dividend has remained steady since that time, paying $1.11 per share annually for a dividend yield of 4.7%. Also, even though the dividend costs about $6.2 billion in the first nine months of the year, AT&T's $12.4 billion in free cash flow should cover the cost of the payout.
Even with that benefit, investors should still remember that AT&T is a mature business. Hence, the fact that its $92 billion in revenue in the first nine months of 2025 grew by only 2% should not surprise investors. Also, cost-cutting efforts and one-time benefits boosted its net income attributable to shareholders for that period to $18.1 billion versus just $6.7 billion one year ago.
That profit surge temporarily reduced its P/E ratio to 7.7. Still, even though the forward P/E ratio is 11, it looks like an inexpensive stock. Consequently, at around $23 per share, investors can buy 21 shares of AT&T stock for about $483, an amount that will offer generous dividend returns and probably some stock price growth over the long term.
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Will Healy has positions in Uber Technologies. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends DoorDash and Uber Technologies. The Motley Fool recommends T-Mobile US and Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

2 Dirt Cheap Stocks to Buy With $1,000 Right Now

Verizon Communications Inc. VZ is increasingly focusing on the healthcare industry by delivering advanced connectivity, secure digital platforms and intelligent technologies that enhance patient care and improve operational efficiency. This approach allows Verizon to help extend quality healthcare services to distant and remote areas where traditional access is limited.
Verizon’s high-speed 5G and private network connectivity, secure cloud and edge computing platforms, and advanced cybersecurity services strengthen digital healthcare systems. These services enable telemedicine, remote patient monitoring, real-time data sharing, and more efficient healthcare operations.
The company has enhanced its healthcare security by adding new tools like Security Management Program–Healthcare (SMP-H) & Partner Security Program (PSP) that improve compliance, protect patient data, and help organizations manage risks across their networks and third-party partners. Verizon has improved its telehealth services through the BlueJeans telehealth platform by adding features like a Command Center dashboard and patient image capture to support better digital care delivery.
Verizon has partnered with several healthcare organizations, like AdventHealth, Tampa General Hospital, and Cleveland Clinic, to advance digital health solutions. It has also teamed up with Emory Healthcare, where its 5G technology powers a healthcare innovation lab to develop remote care.
It runs a Connected Healthcare Center to showcase real-world solutions like virtual wards, wearable-enabled emergency services, team collaboration platforms, and virtual group consultations for patient care. Such initiatives enable Verizon to expand into the digital healthcare industry while creating opportunities for long-term growth and revenues.
How Are Competitors Faring in the Digital Health Market?
Verizon faces stiff competition from AT&T, Inc. T and T-Mobile, US, Inc. TMUS. AT&T is expanding its presence in digital health by using its 5G network and partnering with companies like Sovato to provide virtual care and remote patient monitoring, especially in rural areas. AT&T is expanding 5G healthcare solutions to support real-time remote monitoring, advanced telehealth, and AR/VR tools that improve patient care and clinical workflows. It has joined hands with companies like WellDoc to provide mobile health tools for managing chronic diseases and secure cloud services for healthcare data.
T Mobile is also cementing its position in the digital health market by collaborating with CitrusBits to use 5G for connected healthcare, real-time clinical support, and advanced medical training. T Mobile is working with Dopl Technologies to use 5G-powered telerobotic ultrasounds to provide remote specialist care in rural areas.
VZ’s Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates
Verizon has gained 1.9% over the past year against the industry’s decline of 3.6%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Going by the price/earnings ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 8.09, lower than the 11.17 for the industry.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
VZ’s earnings estimates for 2025 have declined 0.4% to $4.68 per share, while the same for 2026 have dropped 1.4% to $4.81 over the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Verizon currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

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