AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) would like to duplicate that performance after markets close Wednesday, if for no other reason than to show the Dow Jones Industrial Average that it made a mistake when the phone company was dumped from the index in favor of Apple.
AT&T is forecast to post EPS of $0.63 on revenues of $32.8 billion. As with Verizon, analysts have been within a penny of actual EPS in the past two quarters, one in which AT&T beat the estimate and one when it didn’t. Just last week, an analyst at Credit Suisse reiterated the firm’s Outperform rating on AT&T’s stock and $38 per share price target.
While Verizon was able to replace lost phone subscribers with new tablet subscribers, that could be more difficult for AT&T. The two giants are both facing the same dilemma: lower prices to boost profit share against competitors T-Mobile and Sprint or keep prices where they are and try to retain margins. That may work for Verizon, which is widely credited with having the superior network because the company can claim to outperform its rivals. AT&T has more trouble making the same claim to being a premium service.
ALSO READ: Why Value Investors Should Be All Over AT&T
AT&T has already said it expects to add around 400,000 new subscribers in the first quarter. Verizon added 565,000, and T-Mobile US Inc. (NYSE: TMUS) is expected to add nearly as many as the two big boys combined, between 930,000 and 1.03 million, depending on which analyst you ask.
The consensus price target on AT&T stock is around $34.00 per share, and the 52-week range is $32.07 to $37.48. AT&T shares traded up about 0.3% shortly before noon on Wednesday at $32.74.
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