The Latest on AT&T Earnings: What Investors Need to Know

Key Takeaways

• AT&T and other telecommunications rivals report earnings next week, with Verizon on Monday, AT&T Wednesday, and T-Mobile Thursday.
• Investors will be tracking AT&T’s subscriber growth for wireless service and broadband internet, along with updates on plans to cut $2 billion in costs by mid-2026.
• AT&T also may give updates on a February outage that affected thousands of customers, and a data breach that leaked information on about 73 million current and former customers to the dark web earlier this year.

AT&T is gearing up to report earnings for the first quarter of 2024 on Wednesday, amidst a week filled with telecommunications earnings. Analysts are expecting AT&T to report $30.54 billion in revenue for the quarter, with an adjusted net income of $3.9 billion and a diluted earnings per share (EPS) of 51 cents. While this represents an increase in revenue from the same period last year, profitability is expected to decrease.

In terms of key metrics, subscriber growth is a crucial factor for AT&T, as it competes with rivals like Verizon and T-Mobile. Wireless service remains the primary revenue driver for AT&T, with 71.3 million subscribers as of the fourth quarter of 2023. The company is also aiming for revenue growth of about 3% in its wireless division and at least 7% in broadband internet services for 2024.

Despite adding 542,000 mobile subscribers in the first quarter of 2023, AT&T experienced an overall loss in broadband subscribers during the same period. The company added 272,000 users to its AT&T Fiber network, highlighting its focus on expanding high-speed internet services.

In addition to subscriber growth, AT&T has been actively working on cost-cutting efforts. After successfully reducing costs by $6 billion by the end of fiscal 2023, the company plans to achieve an additional $2 billion in savings by mid-2026. Investors and analysts will be keen to learn more about where these cost reductions will come from and how they are progressing.

Recent events have also impacted AT&T’s performance. In February, an outage caused by a software error affected thousands of customers across the U.S., including disruptions to emergency services like 911. Additionally, a data breach exposed personal information, including Social Security numbers, of approximately 73 million current and former customers to the dark web. AT&T has advised affected customers to take precautionary measures such as signing up for fraud alerts and resetting passwords.

Despite these challenges, AT&T’s stock has seen a decline of almost 1.6% year-to-date and nearly 17% over the last 12 months, with shares closing at $16.57 on Friday.

As investors await AT&T’s earnings report, the telecommunications industry continues to evolve rapidly. Stay tuned for updates on subscriber growth, cost-cutting initiatives, and the company’s response to recent events that have impacted its operations.

For more information on AT&T’s upcoming earnings report and industry trends, visit Investopedia.

By incorporating these key insights into your investment strategy, you can stay informed about AT&T’s performance and make well-informed decisions in the ever-changing telecommunications landscape.