NEW YORK - Verizon Communications Inc. said Monday its earnings grew 5 percent in the first quarter, boosted by its acquisition of Alltel Corp. and strong demand for its wireless, Internet and TV services.

Verizon, which is the second-largest U.S. telecommunications provider, earned $3.21 billion, or 58 cents per share, compared with $3.05 billion, or 57 cents per share, a year ago.

Excluding charges related to its acquisition of Alltel, Verizon earned 63 cents per share 4 cents higher than analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected.

Revenue rose almost 12 percent to $26.6 billion. That topped Wall Street's expectations of $26.3 billion in revenue.

Revenue from Verizon Wireless, which is a joint venture with Vodafone Group PLC of Britain, rose 30 percent to $15.1 billion.

During the quarter, Verizon Wireless added 1.3 million net customers more than the 1.2 million rival AT&T Inc. reported last week and the 1.18 million that analysts were expecting.