, Columnist
AT&T Redefines Messy as It Slogs Through Its Media Merger
First-quarter results are overshadowed by all the moving parts.
The company has to balance the demands of dividend-hungry shareholders with the need to reduce debt.
Photographer: Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images
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AT&T Inc. looks exactly like a business that’s been disrupted by a giant debt-laden merger. Go figure.
There have been so many moving parts at the company lately that they were bound to influence first-quarter results as the company tries to balance the demands of its dividend-hungry shareholders and the need to reduce debt. On Wednesday, AT&T said it generated $44.8 billion of revenue, about $300 million shy of analysts’ average projection, while earnings of 86 cents a share were in line with estimates.