New York, NY - Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) Tuesday announced that fourth quarter profit increased by 15.2% from last year, driven by strong customer growth. On an adjusted basis, quarterly earnings declined slightly over the year-ago, but managed to meet the analysts' expectations.

Poor wireline performances have traditionally been offset by good growth from wireless businesses, mainly with the popularity of smart phones. Verizon said it witnessed strong growth in FiOS Internet and TV Customers and increased sales in Verizon Wireless and strategic business services.

Verizon, which is seen as one of the telecom sector's more attractive stocks, had stated previously that strategic investments made over the past few years continue to drive growth in wireless, enterprise, broadband and video.

Net income for the fourth quarter was $1.24 billion, up 15.2% from $1.07 billion in the prior year quarter. Earnings per share rose 16.2% to $0.43 from $0.37 in the previous year quarter.

After adjusting for the spinoff of non-strategic local exchange and related Wireline business assets early in 2008, net income fell to $1.7 billion or $0.61 per share from $1.8 billion or $0.62 per share in the year-ago quarter. On average, 20 analysts polled by First Call/Thomson Financial expected the company to earn $0.61 per share for the fourth quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Verizon's total operating revenues increased 3.4% to $24.65 billion from $23.84 billion in the same quarter of last year. On an adjusted basis, operating revenues grew 4.6%. Sixteen analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $24.74 billion for the fourth quarter.

Among others in the industry, Dallas, Texas-based AT&T Inc. (T: News ) is slated to report financial results for the fourth quarter on January 28. Analysts expect the company to earn $0.65 per share on revenue of $31.35 billion for the fourth quarter.

Another peer, Denver, Colorado-based Qwest Communications International Inc. (Q: News ) is scheduled to report fourth quarter results on February 10. Street expects the company to report earnings of $0.10 per share for the quarter on revenue of $3.31 billion.

Overland Park, Kansas-based Sprint Nextel Corp. (S: News ) is slated to release its fourth-quarter financial results on February 19, which is earlier than previously announced date. Analysts expect the company to report a loss of $0.03 per share, on revenue of $8.55 billion.

Last month, AT&T said that it would cut approximately 12,000 jobs, or about 4% of its workforce, amid the economic slowdown in the U.S. AT&T also plans to reduce its 2009 capital expenditures from 2008 levels.

Qwest Communications said in October that it plans to cut about 1,200 jobs. The reduction will represent a little more than 3% of the total workforce at the end of the third quarter.

Earlier this month, Sprint Nextel said that it would eliminate about 8,000 jobs in the face of a challenging economic environment. According to the company, the job cuts, which will be implemented in the first quarter of 2009, will reduce internal and external labor costs by about $1.2 billion on an annualized basis. The workforce reduction is expected to be largely completed by March 31.

Unlike its peers, Verizon did not make any announcements for job cuts. The company continues to bask under the continued strength in the wireless and Internet service. With its latest buyout of Alltel Corp. and other strategic investments, Verizon seems to be in strong position, compared to its fellow competitors.

Source: RTTNews

Mumbai, India - India's Satyam Computer Services Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE: SAY) tumbled more than 70 percent on Mumbai's stock exchange on Wednesday after the founder and chairman of the country's fourth-largest software exporter stepped down as he admitted commiting a fraud by manipulating accounts over the period of last several years.

Satyam, which is also listed on the New York Stock Exchange under ADR category, had inflated its profit, forcing 53-year-old Chairman B. Ramalinga Raju to resign from his postion on Wednesday.

In a letter issued today to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), India's market regulator, Raju has acknowledged that he falsified accounts and assets of 50.4 billion rupees ($1.04 billion), by understating a liability of 12.3 billion rupees, and overstated debtors' position of 4.9 billion rupees.

In the second quarter, ending September 30, the company reported a revenue of 27 billion rupees and an operating margin of 6.49 billion rupees (24 per cent of revenues) as against the actual revenues of 21.12 billion rupees and an actual operating margin of 0.61 billion rupees (3 per cent of revenues). Raju said that this has resulted in artificial cash and bank balances going up by 5.88 billion rupees in the second quarter alone.

Moreover, the accounting minipulations could have been carried out for several years as the company cannot just survive on 3 percent margin profit.

"The gap in the balance sheet has arisen purely on account of inflated profits over a period of last several years (limited only to Satyam standalone, books of subsidiaries reflecting true performance)," Raju wrote in the letter. "What started as a marginal gap between actual opera ting profit and the one reflected in the books of accounts continued to grow over the years."

The Securities and Exchange Board of India said Wednesday that it has forwarded the letter from Satyam to Ministry of Company Affairs (MCA) and is discussing the legal actions that could be taken against the company and the auditors.

"This event is a first of its kind in India and we need to learn a lot from this," Sebi Chairman C B Bhave was quoted as saying by the Economic Times, a local newspaper.

"We are already in touch with the stock exchanges and the ministry (MCA)," Mr Bhave added. "We also need to check whether the audit was done properly," he said.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, which is the biggest of the Big Four accounting firms, was the statutory auditor for Satyam Computer, the newspaper said.

As the scam was unraveled on Wednesday, shares of Satyam plunged deep into red by more than 70 percent, pushing down India's Sensex or Sensitive Index as much as 5.9 percent to 9,729.56 points in afternoon trading.

“This is a black day for India, the software sector and corporate governance claims,” Mumbai-based Arun Kejriwal, founder of Kejriwal Research & Investment Services, told Bloomberg News. “If at all there’s an event that could be the biggest setback for corporate India, it is this.” Raju said in his letter that out of the reported cash and bank balances of 53.61 billion rupees on Sept. 30, 50.4 billion rupees was non-existent.

"As the promoters held a small percentage of equity, the concern was that poor performance would result in take-over, thereby exposing the gap," Raju said. "It was like riding a tiger, not knowing how to get off without being eaten."

"I am now prepared to subject myself to the laws of the land and face consequences thereof," he added.