AT&T Beats Q3 Estimates and Lifts 2026 EPS Outlook, but Shares Fall About 6%

T reported third-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $0.65 per share, ahead of the $0.60 consensus, on revenue of $32.3 billion, up 5.3% from a year earlier. Zacks put the EPS consensus at $0.61 and said revenue topped estimates by about 2%, while Investing.com's revenue forecast was $31.69 billion. On a GAAP basis the picture is weaker: diluted EPS from continuing operations was $0.13, against $1.29 a year ago, after a non-cash impairment on the held-for-sale Mexico wireless business.

Subscriber growth carried the quarter. AT&T added 379,000 postpaid phone customers with churn of 0.92% and a record 769,000 internet customers, made up of 442,000 fiber and 327,000 fixed-wireless additions. Advanced Connectivity service revenue rose 6.1% to $23.9 billion, and the company's release shows wireless service revenue up 5.0% to $17.8 billion. Free cash flow was $5.0 billion versus $4.9 billion a year earlier, and AT&T returned about $4.8 billion to shareholders, including $2.8 billion of buybacks.

Guidance moved in one place. AT&T raised its 2026 adjusted EPS outlook to about $2.40 from a prior $2.25 to $2.35, while holding 2026 free cash flow at $18 billion or more and capital investment at $23 billion to $24 billion. The capital-spending cut applies to later years: 2027-28 capital investment is now expected at $22 billion to $23 billion a year. The company still plans about $10 billion of share repurchases in 2026.

The market looked past the beat. Shares fell 4.62% in premarket trading to $22.34 from a $23.42 prior close, per Investing.com, and were at $21.91, down 6.4%, late in the session, according to SentiSense data. On the call, CEO John Stankey played down SpaceX's purchase of low-band spectrum for a planned Starlink mobile service: "I wouldn't over-rotate on what I would call one carrier of low-band spectrum," he said, noting AT&T runs six to eight such carriers in a typical metro area. Points to watch include the gap between GAAP and adjusted earnings, fourth-quarter cash generation, and how satellite competition shapes the wireless outlook.