AT&T (NYSE:T) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.06 EPS

AT&T (NYSE:T) announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The technology company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.06, Zacks reports. AT&T had a return on equity of 12.72% and a net margin of 17.87%.The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.91 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.43 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. AT&T updated its FY 2026 guidance to 2.250-2.350 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from AT&T’s conference call:

• AT&T reported strong subscriber momentum — over 1.5M postpaid phone net adds (fifth straight year) and over 1M AT&T Fiber net adds (eighth straight year), plus 875k Internet Air adds, producing the best consumer broadband subscriber growth in a decade.
• Management is accelerating network expansion via spectrum and fiber deals — the EchoStar spectrum and the planned Lumen fiber acquisition (adds ~$900M annualized fiber revenue) — targeting >40 million fiber-capable locations by end-2026 and a long-term ~5M new locations/year rollout.
• Financial results and capital returns are strong — AT&T beat 2025 guidance, generated $16.6B free cash flow in 2025, expects $18B+ FCF in 2026, and plans to return $45B+ to shareholders (2026–2028) while maintaining the dividend and sizable buybacks.
• Near-term leverage and integration drag — net debt/Adjusted EBITDA will rise to ~3.2x immediately after the Lumen/EchoStar closes (then decline to ~3.0x by year-end), with ~$0.05 of EPS dilution in 2026 from standup costs and higher interest and acquisitions not materially accretive to EBITDA until ~2028.
• Reporting and cost-transformation changes — AT&T will recast results into a new Advanced Connectivity segment (5G/fiber) separate from Legacy copper, and targets $4B+ of additional annual cost savings by end-2028 to drive margin improvement.

AT&T Stock Up 4.5%

Shares of T traded up $1.04 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $24.04. 29,438,099 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 43,102,766. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $170.39 billion, a PE ratio of 7.83, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $24.53 and its 200-day moving average is $26.37. AT&T has a 52 week low of $22.95 and a 52 week high of $29.79.

AT&T Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.2775 per share. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 12th. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio is 36.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of AT&T from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of AT&T in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of AT&T from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of AT&T in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded AT&T from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AT&T

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of T. FWL Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of AT&T by 50.2% in the third quarter. FWL Investment Management LLC now owns 1,874 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in AT&T by 4,352.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,234 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $180,000 after acquiring an additional 6,094 shares during the last quarter. von Borstel & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in AT&T during the third quarter valued at about $230,000. Lantern Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AT&T during the second quarter valued at about $230,000. Finally, Financial Advisors Network Inc. grew its position in shares of AT&T by 7.5% in the second quarter. Financial Advisors Network Inc. now owns 8,000 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 561 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.10% of the company’s stock.

Key AT&T News

Here are the key news stories impacting AT&T this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly EPS of $0.52 beat consensus (about $0.46–$0.47) and revenue of ~$33.47B was roughly inline-to-better than Street estimates, showing underlying demand in wireless and consumer services. AT&T (T) Q4 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised FY‑2026 EPS guidance to $2.25–$2.35 (vs. prior consensus ~2.24) and provided a longer-term outlook for improving adjusted EBITDA/adj. EPS and higher free cash flow through 2028 — a signal of confidence in fiber and 5G investments. AT&T Reports Strong Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year 2025 Financial Performance
• Positive Sentiment: Customer momentum: AT&T added ~283k fiber subs and ~421k net postpaid phone subscribers, boosting convergence (fiber + wireless) and supporting higher ARPU/profitability over time. AT&T’s earnings impress as subscriber growth booms and the stock soars
• Positive Sentiment: Capital return: board authorized a new $10B buyback and reiterated plans to return $45B+ to shareholders from 2026–2028, which supports shareholder value and offsets income volatility. AT&T Reports Q4 Earnings, Authorizes New $10B Buyback
• Neutral Sentiment: Strategic initiatives: AT&T is expanding IoT offerings (AWS Marketplace) and pursuing fiber/spectrum deals to capture 5G and broadband demand — longer‑term positives but not immediate catalysts. T Brings IoT Solutions to AWS Marketplace
• Neutral Sentiment: Broad coverage and mentions (WSJ, Reuters) keep AT&T in analyst focus this morning; some outlets emphasize earnings in a busy macro/Fed day, which can mute stock moves. Earnings in Focus Wednesday: GE Vernova, Seagate, AT&T
• Negative Sentiment: Some metrics weigh on sentiment: Q4 net income declined year‑over‑year and EPS of $0.52 is below last year’s $0.54; one data source flagged a slight revenue miss vs. a different estimate — giving traders reasons to take profits. AT&T ($T) Releases Q4 2025 Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Legal/settlement noise: an update on a customer settlement (potential payouts reported) and commentary on margin risks could pressure sentiment for income‑oriented investors. AT&T settlement update could mean payouts

AT&T Company Profile

AT&T Inc is a global telecommunications company that provides a broad range of communications and digital entertainment services. Its core activities include consumer and business wireless services, broadband and fiber internet, and network infrastructure. The company operates branded wireless services through AT&T Mobility and deploys fixed-line and fiber networks to deliver high-speed internet and related home services.

AT&T’s product and service portfolio spans mobile voice and data plans, smartphones and device sales, home internet (including fiber-to-the-home where available), and managed connectivity solutions for enterprise customers.