On June 29, Verizon Comms declined 3.69% in regular trading, trading at approximately $44.22/share, with turnover of $156 million. The stock faced dual headwinds from its formal removal from the Dow Jones Industrial Average and a newly announced joint venture requiring significant upfront cash payment.
Effective today, Alphabet officially replaced Verizon in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, as Verizon's low share price represented only about 0.5% of the index weight. The removal triggered passive selling from Dow-tracking index funds, creating sustained downward pressure on shares.
Simultaneously, Verizon announced a 50:50 joint venture with BT Group to serve multinational corporate clients across more than 180 countries, covering over 3,000 customers with expected annual revenue of approximately $4 billion. Under the deal, Verizon will pay BT a $625 million equalization payment. BT's CEO stated the funds will primarily finance the JV, with any remainder used for debt reduction. The transaction is expected to close in 2027, subject to regulatory approvals. While Verizon expects the deal to be EBITDA-accretive by Q2, the near-term cash outflow added to selling pressure.
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