Sep. 29--Verizon Communications Inc.

NYSE: VZ

Headquarters: 140 West St., New York

Founded: 1983

Activities: Offers broadband, wireline and wireless communications products to consumers and businesses. Verizon Wireless serves nearly 69 million U.S. customers; the wireline operations include Verizon Business, with services worldwide, and Verizon Telecom, which provides a network of high-capacity fiber optics to the premises that goes by the name FiOS.

Verizon plans a $100 million network investment in upstate New York this year; since 2000, it has invested $1 billion upstate.

Employees: 228,600, including more than 100 in the Capital Region

Performance: Verizon stock underperformed both the S&P telecom services index and the S&P 500 index over a five-year period. A $100 investment in Verizon on Dec. 31, 2002, rose to $145.40 by year-end 2007; it rose to $182.80 on the S&P 500 and to $185.90 on the telecom index.

Special notes: On June 5, Verizon Wireless entered into an agreement to acquire Alltel Corp. in a cash merger valued at $28.1 billion. Alltel serves more than 13 million customers in markets in 34 states; Verizon Wireless has 68.7 million customers. Both companies use the same network technology. The deal is expected to close by the end of the year.

In July, Verizon launched its FiOS TV service in New York City, where it will make available 100 high-definition TV channels. The Big Apple franchise covers 3 million premises, and Verizon already passes about 25 percent with fiber.

Verizon does not offer FiOS TV service in the Capital Region, but has built an all-fiber network in several communities, and sells FiOS Internet services in parts of these communities: Albany, Altamont, Cohoes, Colonie, Delmar, Feura Bush, Glenmont, Guilderland, Latham, Loudonville, Niskayuna, Schenectady, Scotia, Selkirk, Slingerlands and Watervliet.

Market outlook

For the first half, Verizon reported net income of $3.5 billion, or $1.23 a share, on operating revenue of $47.96 billion. That compares to net income of $3.2 billion, or $1.09 a share, on revenue of $45.86 billion in 2007's first half. The company is due to report third-quarter results on Oct. 27.

For the six months ended June 30, Verizon's capital expenditures totaled $8.4 billion, vs. $8.5 billion in 2007. Verizon Wireless completed payment in the second quarter for licenses it was awarded in the Federal Communications Commission's 700 MHz auction; its aggregate bid was $9.4 billion.