AT&T posted its consolidated financial results for the third quarter of 2017 earlier this week, revealing that it managed to achieve three million wireless net adds and a net income of $3 billion in the three-month period ending September 30th. While the company’s overall performance was slightly below street estimates, no changes to its outlook on the 2017 fiscal year were introduced as part of its latest financial report. Out of three million wireless net additions in total, 2.3 million were attributed to consumers in the United States, whereas the rest was generated by AT&T’s operations in Mexico, the wireless carrier said.
The telecom giant’s consolidated revenues amounted to $39.7 billion in Q3 2017, with its operating income reaching $6.4 billion. AT&T estimated its free cash flow at $5.9 billion over the quarter, noting that its Entertainment Group also performed reasonably well in the same period and added 125,000 IP broadband net customers, with the performance in this segment allowing the division to end the quarter on a positive note and post 29,000 broadband net additions in total. The company’s number of standard TV subscribers declined in a manner that AT&T deemed “traditional” in its report, noting that its DIRECT NOW streaming service is already delivering results and helping the firm nullify its declining performance in the conventional TV market. The losses themselves were still relatively significant, amounting to 251,00 DIRECTV satellite subscribers and 134,000 U-verse TV users. The DIRECTV NOW online service had 787,000 subscribers as of September 30th, having grown by more than 50 percent compared to the second quarter of the year.
AT&T’s overall results were weaker than Q3 financials of telecom giants traditionally are, with the company attributing this state of affairs to the ongoing process of restructuring both its video and wireless business. AT&T Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Randall Stephenson was still quick to point out that the telecom firm is maintaining its full-year guidance despite being in a transitional period, suggesting that this accomplishment is a sign of a healthy business model and long-term sustainability. Up until recently, AT&T was expected to conclude its historic acquisition of Time Warner in time for the publication of its Q3 2017 financials but recently postponed the deadline for the deal as it’s still lacking certain regulatory approvals, including the blessing of the U.S. Department of Justice.