Verizon raises annual earnings forecast after $2 billion AWS fiber deal

Verizon has lifted its full-year adjusted earnings per share forecast to a range of $5.04 to $5.06, up from the previous estimate of $4.99 to $5.04. The carrier also announced a new infrastructure agreement with Amazon's cloud division, AWS, valued at more than $2 billion.

Under the deal, Verizon will supply high-capacity fiber-optic connectivity to AWS data centers. The arrangement is designed to enable faster and more reliable data transfers to support increasing AI computing workloads.

Despite the optimistic outlook for the full year, Verizon reported third-quarter revenue of $34.3 billion, which fell short of analyst estimates of $34.74 billion according to LSEG data. The company attributed the revenue pressure to lower device upgrade volumes, noting that customers are holding onto their phones longer following Verizon's decision to cut device subsidies.

This report marks one year into the tenure of CEO Dan Schulman, who has overseen a broad business overhaul. The restructuring includes simplified wireless offerings and the launch of the Simplicity plan in June, which features transparent pricing and unlimited data.

The AWS contract follows a similar agreement announced in July with Google, valued at more than $1 billion for dark fiber data center connections. These moves highlight how rising demand for AI infrastructure is opening a new revenue stream for telecom operators beyond traditional wireless and broadband services.