AT&T (NYSE:T – Get Free Report) issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The technology company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.05, FiscalAI reports. AT&T had a return on equity of 12.86% and a net margin of 16.94%. The business had revenue of $32.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.54 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year.
Here are the key takeaways from AT&T’s conference call:
- Strong third-quarter operating performance: AT&T added more than 1 million advanced-connectivity subscribers, while service revenue rose 3.8%, adjusted EBITDA increased 5.4%, and adjusted EPS grew 20% year over year to $0.65.
- Management raised its full-year adjusted EBITDA outlook to the upper end of the 3%–4% growth range and increased expected adjusted EPS to approximately $2.40; it maintained guidance for more than $18 billion of free cash flow and approximately $10 billion of 2026 share repurchases.
- Fiber expansion remains central to AT&T’s strategy, with 416,000 fiber net adds in the quarter and a target of reaching more than 60 million fiber locations by decade-end. However, fiber ARPU fell 4% year over year due to introductory pricing, convergence discounts, and lower-ARPU customers in acquired Lumen markets, with similar pressure expected in the fourth quarter.
- Net debt to adjusted EBITDA increased to 3.13x after AT&T’s $23 billion spectrum purchase from EchoStar, although management expects leverage to return to approximately 2.5x in 2029. Fourth-quarter EBITDA will also face roughly $100 million of unfavorable vendor dispute settlements and higher customer-acquisition costs.
- AT&T agreed to sell its Mexico wireless business and plans to form a fiber joint venture with Global Infrastructure Partners and CPP Investments, actions management says will sharpen its U.S. investment focus and help fund further fiber deployment while reducing planned annual 2027–2028 capital spending by about $1 billion.
AT&T Trading Down 6.3%
Shares of AT&T stock opened at $21.95 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $150.38 billion, a PE ratio of 7.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $24.90 and its 200 day moving average is $24.29. AT&T has a 1 year low of $19.89 and a 1 year high of $29.43.
AT&T Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, October 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.2775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.1%. AT&T’s payout ratio is 36.75%.
AT&T News Summary
Here are the key news stories impacting AT&T this week:
- Positive Sentiment: AT&T reported adjusted earnings of $0.65 per share and revenue of $32.32 billion, exceeding analyst expectations. Revenue increased roughly 5% year over year, while the company raised its 2026 adjusted EPS outlook to approximately $2.40. AT&T Q3 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates
- Positive Sentiment: Operating momentum remained strong: AT&T added a record 769,000 internet customers, including 442,000 fiber and 327,000 fixed-wireless additions, along with 379,000 postpaid phone subscribers. Advanced Connectivity revenue rose 6.1%, and operating income increased 18.9%. AT&T Third-Quarter Results
- Positive Sentiment: Management plans to return substantial capital to shareholders, including approximately $10 billion of share repurchases in 2026. It also lowered planned annual capital investment for 2027 and 2028 to $22 billion-$23 billion, potentially supporting future free cash flow. AT&T Raises 2026 Earnings Outlook
- Neutral Sentiment: CEO John Stankey played down the threat from SpaceX’s Starlink Mobile service, saying low-Earth-orbit satellites could complement traditional networks in rural areas. However, investors remain concerned that Starlink competition could increase customer incentives and wireless spending. AT&T CEO Discusses Starlink
- Negative Sentiment: The quarter included a $2.6 billion noncash impairment tied to AT&T’s Mexico wireless business, pressuring reported profit. Net debt reached approximately $149.8 billion after the EchoStar spectrum transaction, and management now expects to return to its 2.5-times net-debt-to-adjusted-EBITDA target in 2029, suggesting slower deleveraging than some investors expected. AT&T Slides After Earnings
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
T has been the subject of several analyst reports. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on AT&T from $27.50 to $26.50 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 9th. BNP Paribas Exane raised AT&T from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $26.00 to $30.00 in a report on Monday, September 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $27.00 price target on AT&T in a research report on Wednesday. KeyCorp decreased their price target on AT&T from $36.00 to $33.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wolfe Research raised AT&T from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $29.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AT&T has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $28.58.
About AT&T
AT&T Inc (NYSE: T) is a telecommunications company that provides wireless communications, broadband, and related connectivity services. Its offerings include mobile voice and data plans, internet access, fiber broadband, fixed wireless services, and business communications solutions.
The company serves consumers, businesses, government agencies, and other organizations primarily in the United States. AT&T’s business operations include wireless network services, wireline connectivity, fiber-optic internet, voice services, and networking solutions designed to connect locations, devices, and applications.
AT&T traces its history to the Bell System and has operated under its current corporate name since 2005, following the acquisition of AT&T Corp.
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