Telecoms · 26/36 against 23/36 checks · to 2026-09-08
TMUS vs VZ.
T-MobileRuns one of the three US wireless networks, the one winning the most subscribers.
VerizonRuns one of the three US wireless networks, plus fibre broadband.→T-Mobile (TMUS) and Verizon (VZ) are within reach of each other at $194.9B and $209.4B, and on the filings T-Mobile passes more, 26 checks of 36 against 23.
Which passes more checks?
widest gap first→No axis separates them by more than 2 of six checks, and the widest is Growth.
| TMUS | VZ | |
|---|---|---|
| Growth | 4/6 | 2/6 |
| Health | 5/6 | 3/6 |
| Trend analysis | 4/6 | 6/6 |
| Value | 4/6 | 3/6 |
| Quality | 5/6 | 5/6 |
| Shareholder returns | 4/6 | 4/6 |
| All checks | 26/36 | 23/36 |
→Verizon turns over $138.9B to T-Mobile's $92.2B, 1.5 times as much. T-Mobile keeps 11.5% of revenue as profit against 12.0% at Verizon.
Which is growing faster, TMUS or VZ?
→T-Mobile grew revenue faster last year, +9.7% against +1.4% at Verizon - 8 points apart. Over three years the order is the same, T-Mobile at +3.5% and Verizon at +0.3%.
| TMUS | VZ | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue (TTM) | $92.2B | $138.9B |
| Revenue growth, 1 year | +9.7% | +1.4% |
| Revenue CAGR, 3 years | +3.5% | +0.3% |
| Net income (TTM) | $10.6B | $16.6B |
| Free cash flow (TTM) | $18.4B | $21.8B |
Which balance sheet is stronger?
→T-Mobile carries much the lighter balance sheet, 0.11x of debt to equity against 1.57x - which matters most in the year a downturn arrives, not this one.
| TMUS | VZ | |
|---|---|---|
| Debt / equity | 0.11x | 1.57x |
| Interest coverage | 5.7x | 3.9x |
| Cash and short-term investments | $2.8B | $2.1B |
Which is cheaper?
→Verizon is the cheaper of the two on earnings, 12.8x against 19.5x. Against their own histories, T-Mobile is below its 23.7x median and Verizon is above its 8.4x.
| TMUS | VZ | |
|---|---|---|
| Share price | $181.69 | $50.41 |
| Market cap | $194.9B | $209.4B |
| P/E | 19.5x | 12.8x |
| P/E, own median own 11-year median / own 11-year median | 23.7x | 8.4x |
| P/S | 2.1x | 1.5x |
| Free cash flow yield | 9.4% | 10.4% |
Which keeps more of each sale?
→T-Mobile keeps more of each sale: gross margin of 87.3% against 83.7%, a gap of 4 points that flows into everything below it.
| TMUS | VZ | |
|---|---|---|
| Gross margin | 87.3% | 83.7% |
| Operating margin | 19.8% | 20.5% |
| Return on equity | 18.8% | 15.8% |
Which hands more back to owners?
→Both pay: Verizon yields the more at 5.5% against 2.1%. A yield rises when a price falls, so read it beside the payout checks in each report.
| TMUS | VZ | |
|---|---|---|
| Dividend yield | 2.1% | 5.5% |
| Payout ratio | 39.0% | 69.1% |
| Years of unbroken dividend | - | - |
Where they differ most
the checks behind the gapGrowth: T-Mobile 2 ahead
- Outgrew its sector last year 9.7% vs 5.2% (sector 70th pct, n=61)
- Profit growth beats its peers 67.6% vs 13.0% (market 70th pct)
- Growth is speeding up, not slowing 1y 9.7% vs 3y 3.5%
- Outgrew its sector last year 1.4% vs 5.2% (sector 70th pct, n=61)
- Sustained growth beats its sector (3 years) 0.3% vs 5.2% (sector 70th pct, n=57)
- Profits grew last year -10.9% vs 0.0%
Health: T-Mobile 2 ahead
- Debt isn't dominating 0.11 vs 1.00
- Debt trending the right way debt/equity 0.11 now vs 1.02 five years ago
- Earnings cover the interest 5.72 vs 5.00
- Comfortable near-term liquidity 0.60 vs 1.50
- Debt isn't dominating 1.57 vs 1.00
- Earnings cover the interest 3.88 vs 5.00