Verizon Disguises a $10 Billion Offering

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Is this what investors will say when Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch come a-knockin' with the $5 billion Verizon Wireless initial public offering? The lead underwriters are, after all, the same folks who hocked AT&T Wireless' (AWE Quote) $11.5 billion tracking-stock offering in April, which is down 17% from its offering price and 31% from its 52-week high.

Verizon Wireless, mindful of that poor performance and overall weakness in the telecom sector, is afraid of just such a reaction. So it's gingerly approaching the market with a seemingly "massive" $5 billion IPO announced earlier today. But the company, owned by Verizon Communications (VZ Quote), actually wants to raise far more -- at least $10 billion, according to a person familiar with the company's plans but not directly involved in the offering. ...