Author Archives: Scalper1
Verizon Wireline, FiOS Workers Set Strike; Wireless Non-Unionized
Two unions representing Verizon Communication ’s ( VZ ) landline workers, including FiOS TV and broadband services, announced they plan to strike Wednesday at 6 a.m. ET if they cannot negotiate a new contract with the phone company by then. Verizon’s wireless workers are not unionized, except for roughly 100 employees. Verizon’s wireline workers also walked out in 2000 and 2011. The Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) have been negotiating a new deal with Verizon since June. The two unions represent about 39,000 workers. Verizon has a total workforce of nearly 178,000. Verizon’s unionized workforce has shrunk from about 85,000 in 2000. Verizon now garners three-fourths of revenue from wireless services, following its divestiture of landline assets in California, Florida and Texas to Frontier Communications ( FTR ). The $10.5 billion Frontier deal closed last week. “Wireline represents only 25% of Verizon’s consolidated revenue, and 15% of EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) following the sale to Frontier,” says a UBS report. Democratic candidate for president Bernie Sanders has voiced his support for Verizon’s landline workers. “We’ve worked hard in negotiations to find common ground, but working people at Verizon and across the country have had enough of the corporate greed that is destroying our families and our economy,” Dennis Trainor, CWA District 1 vice president, said in a press release Monday. The two unions and Verizon have been bargaining to resolve changes to health care and pension benefits, as well as wage increases and other issues. “We do not take strike threats lightly,” Bob Mudge, president of Verizon’s wireline network operations, said in a statement . “We have trained thousands of non-union Verizon employees to carry out virtually every job function handled by our represented workforce — from making repairs on poles to responding to inquiries in our call centers.” Verizon is slated to report its Q1 earnings on April 21.
Fitbit Device Demand Solid; GoPro Weak; Garmin Mixed
Retail checks by Morgan Stanley showed good news for Fitbit ( FIT ), bad news for GoPro ( GPRO ) and mixed news for Garmin ( GRMN ). Fitbit’s new Blaze smart fitness watch and Alta fitness wristband appear to be selling well and could drive upside to Fitbit’s Q1 earnings and Q2 guidance, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty said in a research report Monday. “Our checks indicate demand for Blaze and Alta were ahead of expectations, and retailers are already putting in reorders for the Blaze, which shipped earlier than the Alta,” Huberty said. Fitbit reported March 31 that it had shipped more than 1 million units each of the Blaze and Alta within their first month of availability. “We expect management will remain conservative on guidance but still expect Q2 estimates to move higher post-earnings,” she said. Meanwhile, retail checks for GoPro action cameras point to year-over-year declines in sell-through, with retailers still working down channel inventory. “Our conversations suggest enthusiasm for the product category continues to wane, and the upcoming Hero 5 is unlikely to recapture retailer shelf space lost during the recent spring reset,” Huberty said. She is cautious on GoPro’s upcoming quadcopter “flying camera” product, though the market appears to be picking up. Competitors are expected to launch lower-priced drones, hurting sales of GoPro’s premium product. Fitbit rival Garmin is retaining market share in high-end sports watches, but it appears to be losing share in activity trackers, Huberty said. In afternoon trading on the stock market today , Fitbit stock was up 5.5%, above 15, while GoPro was down 3%, near 12, and Garmin stock was up 1.5%, above 40.