AT&T Inc. said its first-quarter profit dropped slightly,
though the telecommunication giant added more wireless
subscribers.
The company now sees 2014 revenue rising 4% or more. It
previously expected 2% to 3% revenue growth.
AT&T said it added 625,000 customers who signed long-term
service contracts in the first quarter, compared with 296,000
additions a year earlier and 566,000 in the fourth quarter.
AT&T and Verizon Wireless, the two biggest U.S. wireless
carriers, are facing renewed pressure from rivals T-Mobile US Inc.
and Sprint Corp. T-Mobile has been especially vocal, doing away
with standbys like service contracts and international data fees in
an effort to win new customers. AT&T has also expanded its
planned rollout of high-speed Internet service to as many as 100
cities and towns, amid tougher competition as rivals in the cable
industry bulk up.
For the latest period, AT&T reported a profit of $3.65
billion, or 70 cents a share, down from $3.7 billion, or 67 cents a
share, a year ago. Adjusted profit climbed to 71 cents from 64
cents a share.
Revenue grew to $32.5 billion.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected an adjusted
profit of 70 cents a share on $32.47 billion in revenue.
AT&T said the rate at which wireless contract customers left
its network, called churn, increased to 1.07% from 1.04%. The
figure totaled 1.11% in the fourth quarter.
Total wireless revenue, including equipment sales, grew 7%,
while total wireline revenue was down 0.4%.
Write to John Kell at john.kell@wsj.com
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