Instead of buying AOL and Yahoo, Verizon should have invested in network upgrades.
It would provide long term benefits, which can translate in better stock price as well. Key word - long term. Most Verizon "investors" can't operate in such terms however, they only see short term or nothing. It's a common mindset of the Wall Street today anyway. That's why Verizon let their networks rot, and doesn't replace them with fiber everywhere.
Working for Verizon? No, thanks. Until their whole upper management will be replaced, I doubt they'll improve in major ways.
That doesn't explain many, many companies with high P/E ratios (such as AMZN).
If you know which companies have sacrificed the long term for short term gain, then you'd get rich shorting their stocks.
They have talked themselves into a trap. They will find synergy is hard to turn into money if they can find it at all. In 10 years they will start talking about specialization and focus.