AT&T Posts $3.9 Billion Net Loss For Q4 2012

AT&T is joining the slew of other companies posting quarterly results this week, with the company releasing its Q4 2012 financials today. The company experienced another loss in Q4 2012, but the good news is that AT&T's loss is growing smaller year-over-year. For Q4 2012, the company posted a net loss of $3.9 billion, which is compared to AT&T's net loss of $6.7 billion in the same quarter a year ago.

That puts diluted earnings-per-share at -$0.68 for the quarter – certainly better than the earnings-per-share of -$1.12 the company posted the year before. When things like the impact from Hurricane Sandy and the sale of Advertising Solutions are taken into account, AT&T's adjusted earnings-per-share were $0.44. Consolidated revenue was $32.6 billion, remaining mostly flat year-over-year, increasing only 0.2% over the year-ago quarter.

AT&T managed to add 780,000 new subscribers during the quarter, with company calling it the largest increase in three years. AT&T sold 10.2 million smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2012, setting a record for the company. The company activated 8.6 million iPhones, but AT&T also said that it had its best quarter ever for Android sales. In all, AT&T says that smartphones now account for 89% of all postpaid phone sales, which isn't bad at all.

For the year as a whole, the company's consolidated revenue hit $127.4 billion, which is up ever so slightly over 2011's revenue of $126.7 billion. Net profit settled at $7.3 billion for the year, jumping significantly over 2011's $3.9 billion, and earnings-per-share came in at $1.25, very nearly doubling 2011's take of $0.66. Looking forward, AT&T expects consolidated revenue growth for 2013 to exceed two percent while it's also projecting that wireless service and wireless consumer revenues will remain strong.

[via AT&T]