AT&T stock weighs record internet growth against higher debt

AT&T's third-quarter operating momentum is strengthening, but the EchoStar spectrum transaction has increased the financial burden of its expansion. In its October 21 earnings release, AT&T reported record internet additions and raised its 2026 adjusted earnings outlook.

AT&T stock traded at 18.96 euros on Lang & Schwarz at 11:05 Berlin time on Friday, October 30, 2026. Investors can follow the real-time quote of AT&T stock.

Fiber And Wireless Additions Accelerate

AT&T added 769,000 consumer and business Advanced Connectivity internet customers during the third quarter, its strongest quarterly result for the metric. Fiber accounted for 442,000 additions and fixed wireless for 327,000. The company also added 379,000 postpaid phone customers, while postpaid phone churn was 0.92 percent.

Advanced Connectivity service revenue rose 6.1 percent year over year to 23.9 billion US dollars. Segment operating income increased 18.9 percent, and adjusted EBITDA rose 7.3 percent to 12.3 billion US dollars. The company said 42.8 percent of households using its advanced home internet services also selected AT&T wireless, supporting its strategy of selling multiple services to the same customer.

Outlook Improves As Debt Rises

Consolidated revenue increased 5.3 percent year over year to 32.3 billion US dollars. Adjusted diluted earnings per share reached 0.65 US dollars, compared with 0.54 US dollars in the year-ago quarter. Reported diluted earnings per share were 0.13 US dollars because of a 2.6 billion US dollar non-cash impairment charge tied to the held-for-sale Mexico wireless business, employee separation costs and other items.

AT&T raised its 2026 adjusted earnings-per-share outlook to the 2.40 US dollar range and maintained its expectation for at least 18 billion US dollars of free cash flow. It also plans capital investment of 22 billion to 23 billion US dollars annually in 2027 and 2028 while targeting more than 60 million fiber locations by the end of 2030.

The balance-sheet trade-off is substantial. Total debt stood at 159.6 billion US dollars and net debt at 149.8 billion US dollars at September 30, 2026, with the increase reflecting the closing of the EchoStar spectrum transaction. AT&T expects its net-debt-to-adjusted-EBITDA ratio to return to the 2.5-times range during 2029.

Capital Allocation Sets The Next Test

Management's case rests on converting fiber and wireless additions into recurring service revenue while funding network investment, dividends and share repurchases. AT&T returned approximately 4.8 billion US dollars to shareholders in the quarter, including 2.8 billion US dollars of common-stock repurchases. For investors, the central question is whether operating growth can reduce leverage without weakening the company's network build-out or shareholder returns.

The company also remains on track to pass more than 40 million total fiber locations by the end of 2026. The planned sale of AT&T Mexico and the continuing decommissioning of its copper network are intended to sharpen the domestic focus, but execution and the pace of debt reduction remain important to the stock's outlook.

The broader US equity market provides the relevant setting for AT&T's next trading session; see current S&P 500 market reports.

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