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Verizon Communications Inc., the nation's second largest telecommunications company, on Monday reported a 3.9 percent rise in fourth-quarter earnings on steady but moderate growth in its core operations.
Verizon also reported reaching a milestone as a TV provider, saying it had 943,000 subscribers to FiOS TV at the end of the year and more than 1 million now.
The service, delivered over fiber-optic lines in parts of 13 states, is Verizon's way of countering the threat from cable providers who are siphoning off phone customers. Verizon lost 10.6 percent, or nearly 3 million, of its residential phone lines last year.
Verizon earned $1.07 billion, or 37 cents per share, in the October-December period, compared to $1.03 billion, or 35 cents per share, a year earlier.

Labels: Verizon Communications Inc., VZ

Here are 7 stocks for traders for Monday from TradingMarkets.com:
Alberto-Culver (NYSE:ACV - News) reports earnings on Monday before the market opens, with traders looking for $0.26 EPS. ACV's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
Black & Decker (NYSE:BDK - News) announces quarterly results on Monday morning; watch for $1.03 EPS. BDK's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
Halliburton (NYSE:HAL - News) is poised to report $0.69 EPS on Monday morning before the bell. HAL's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
When McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - News) announces results on Monday morning, traders will be watching for $0.71 EPS. MCD's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
Tyson Foods (NYSE:TSN - News) expects to report $0.04 EPS on Monday morning. TSN's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
Analysts will be watching for Verizon (NYSE:VZ - News) to report for $0.62 EPS on Monday morning. VZ's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
On Monday afternoon, watch for SanDisk (NasdaqGS:SNDK - News) to report $0.64 EPS. SNDK's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.

Labels: ACV, BDK, HAL, MCD, SNDK, Stocks to Watch, TSN, VZ

Erin Burnett started the show today asking if CITI Group's decision to sell almost 5% of their company to the Arabs was such a good one. Also that crude oil is down about 3%. Steve Leisman says that focus is being taken off the weak dollar and on to the weak economy. Future plans are in effect for the improvement of consumers concern with the state of the economy and risk of recession. Abu Dhabi has paid over $7 B (The biggest purchase of an American Company buy a foreign) to make part of CITI. Arabs are looking for financials, homebuilders and hotels. Anything from actual buildings to stock equity sharing on the financial sector side are up for grabs. Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York shows concern for a continuing opportunity for American investments. As a democrat, free trade is not a top priority for him, and he wants to avoid building walls in between Americans and business buy giving power to foreign investors. The Arabs say they have no interest in board or managerial roles, only to play as a passivist support group who believes in the potential of American companies. David Weber says MasterCard (MA) and Research in Motion (RIMM) are his picks for the day. Next, there was the real estate market. David Blitzer of Standard and Poor's says that prices are driving foreclosures, resulting in a 524,000 fewer jobs and $6.6 billion lost in taxes. Also that a mass amount of foreclosures are driving the prices of surrounding homes down. The worst hit is New York at a loss of over $10 B. You can keep updated by visiting; realtycheck.cnbc.com. Next, Russia will be electing a parliament on Sunday, Dec 2nd. Julian Mayo of U.S Global Investors Eastern Europe Fund says that increased certainty is acknowledged for the outcome, being in supporters of Vladmir Putin's favor. The Russian market is leading the world. Utilities and Telecomm are the top performers in Russia. An update for CITI Group says that the company has not closed off opportunities for foreign purchase and investment. Rick Santelli of CNBC says that apparently CITI is looking for more than $7.5 B. and a loss of ownership by more than 5%. David Faber of CNBC says that raising capital will be the main concern for financial institutions as a result of CITI's decisions. More write-downs to come for consumers, and more capital to be raised will likely come from Arab investors and foreign petroleum dollars. Jim Cramer with Stop Trading was next. American International Group (AIG), and JP Morgan (JPM) are among his choices for likely candidates for middle eastern investors. He says that more capital for the corporations should be a positive thing for consumers. Jim Goldman of CNBC says that Verizon (VZ) announced that they will promote unrestricted access. This makes Verizon a much stronger competitor in the future. With 64M wireless customers in the U.S, Verizon will cause even more problems for companies such as Sprint and Nextel.

Labels: Abu Dhabi, AIG, Citigroup Inc., CNBC, CNBC's Stop Trading, Erin Burnett, Jim Cramer, Jim Cramer's Stop Trading, JPM, MA, RIMM, Sprint Nextel, Street Signs, street signs recap, VZ

Crude Oil: Crude oil declined 3% today as investors now fear that the global growth story might be in jeopardy. Finerman said that if you feel the US economy is going to slow down, then demand for oil will also drop. She would look to short the United States Oil Fund (USO). Adami said that shorting Exxon Mobil (XOM) ahead of earnings is a gutsy trade that could pay off big. Dylan Ratigan mentions one more way to short oil is to buy the UltraShort Oil & Gas ProShares (DUG).
Technology: Adami liked hearing that Dell (DELL) is announcing a big buyback, while the stock is at a 52 week high. Najarian says this plays well for Dell, as well as Apple (AAPL), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Microsoft (MSFT). The Wall Street Journal reported that Verizon (VZ) and Google (GOOG) are discussing a mobile phone partnership.
Video Games: International Game Technology (IGT) and Electronic Arts (ERTS) are both set to report earnings this week. Macke thinks the trade is to buy Activison (ATVI), Nintendo (NTDOY) and Microsoft. Najarian noted monster options activity in the November $17.50 calls for Take-Two Interactive (TTWO). The action makes him think that TTWO is set to move higher.
Word on the Street
Procter & Gamble (PG) reports a 14% rise in profits but disappoints Wall Street on its full-year outlook. Najarian favors Colgate-Palmolive (CL) overseas.
Merrill Lynch (MER) drops after former CEO Stan O'Neal leaves. Finerman doubts the CO-CEO arrangement will work. Adami continues to like Raymond James (RJF).
Wynn Resorts (WYNN) fell in after-hours trading. Najarian would look to buy the stock on selloff. Adami would rather be long Las Vegas Sands (LVS) and Boyd Gaming (BYD).
Under Armour (UA) trades up 7% on strong earnings.
Masco also traded up 4% on strong earnings.
Pops & Drops
Pops - Goodyear Tire (GT) traded up 8%.
Colgate-Palmolive (CL) traded up 1%
Avon Products (AVP) traded up 4% on strong profits from emerging market strength. Finerman favors Estee Lauder (EL).
Sohu.com (SOHU) traded up 8% on a 47% rise in profits.
Yum! Brands (YUM) traded up 3% on no news.
AGCO (AG) popped 9%
Sepracor (SEPR) exploded up 16%
Drops- US Steel (X) fell 7% after reporting a 35% drop in profits.
WellCare Health Plans (WCG) plunged 33%
Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI) dropped 9%
Final Trade
Macke suggests buying the pullback in Yahoo! (YHOO). He currently owns YHOO.
Adami recommends Dell.
Finerman says buy Cadbury Schweppes (CSG) for a Halloween candy trade.
Najarian favors Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS).

Labels: AAPL, ATVI, CNBC, Crude Oil, DELL, fast money, Fast Money Recap, GOOG, HPQ, MSFT, USO, VZ, XOM

Today on The Call, they discussed how oil hit a record high of $92.22/barrel overnight. Up 30% YTD since mid-August. Microsoft, Hewlett Packard, IBM and Verizon are market leaders today. Dow is about 430 points lower than the October 9th week end. Scott Sperlingco president of Thomas H Lee Partners says private equity investments are getting worse. Oil Prices due more to speculators rather than fundamentals says, Chris Motroni, an independent investor. Leopard may compete with Vista operating systems. With 300 new features, and new backup system, Macintosh has seen a 30% increase since Leopards' release. Next up, Kudlow interviewed vice president Dick Cheney, discussing Iran sanctions and oil. Cheney says doing business with Iran causes problems with business done with America. For $5,000 you can spend a day and a half test driving Lamborghini's, Ferraris, and Mercedes. (behindthewheel.cnbc.com)

Labels: CNBC, CNBC's The Call, Crude Oil, HP, IBM, Kudlow, MSFT, The Call, VZ

Stock futures lifted in wobbly trading Monday, as Wall Street remained jittery about a possible credit crunch putting a crimp on U.S. growth.
Last week was the worst in five years for the Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor's 500 index. On Thursday and Friday, the Dow fell a total of 585 points, caving under growing worries about a shakier lending climate.
Some of Monday's major earnings reports brought good news. Health benefits provider Humana Inc. said its second-quarter profit more than doubled year-over-year, and HSBC Holdings PLC, Europe's largest bank by market value, said that while lending risks remain, its first-half earnings rose by 25 percent.
But market volatility is high and credit concerns are running deep, so it's unclear if any of the day's news will allay investors' fears of a major correction. Stock futures -- bets on how the stock market will perform during the normal trading session -- bobbed higher and lower ahead of the opening bell.
Investors were also disappointed to hear that China tightened its credit again to rein in the country's excess cash, by ordering banks to hike their reserves.
Dow futures expiring in September rose 17, or 0.13 percent, to 13,301. The Standard & Poor's 500 futures rose 0.70, or 0.05 percent, at 1,458.70, while the Nasdaq 100 futures rose 1.00, or 0.05 percent, to 1,964.50.

Labels: HBC, HUM, RSH, Stock Futures, VZ