AT&T posts slight beat in fourth-quarter earnings

[SAN FRANCISCO] AT&T Inc on Tuesday reported earnings and quarterly revenue that slightly beat Wall Street expectations as its mobile device deals attracted more customers.

The second-largest US wireless carrier posted a net loss of US$4 billion, or 77 cents per share, in the fourth quarter, compared with net income US$6.9 billion, or US$1.31 per share, a year ago.

Shares in AT&T were up 2 per cent in after-hours trading after closing at US$32.81 on the New York Stock Exchange.

AT&T said it had added more than 2 million new wireless customers and 854,000 contract subscribers in the quarter.

The company said postpaid churn, or the rate of customer defections, rose to 1.22 per cent and average revenue per phone user declined 10.7 per cent from a year earlier.

Excluding items, AT&T earned 55 cents per share, a penny more than analysts' forecasts.

Revenue rose to US$34.4 billion from US$33.16 billion in the year-ago quarter. Wall Street analysts, on average, had expected US$34.27 billion, according to Thomson Reuters.

REUTERS