Stock Market Today, July 22: AT&T Beats Earnings on Strong Wireless Subscriber Growth
AT&T (NYSE:T), a nationwide wireless and broadband carrier, closed at $23.04, up 3.50%. Earnings and subscriber growth data beat estimates, even as revenue missed expectations.
Trading volume reached 177.6 million shares, coming in about triple its three-month average of 57.9 million shares.
How the markets moved today
The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX:^GSPC) fell 0.13% to 7,499, while the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX:^IXIC) declined 0.57% to 25,691. Among U.S. wireless telecommunications services peers, Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) rose 1.16% to $44.29, while T-Mobile US (NASDAQ:TMUS) was little changed, edging down 0.09% to $190.94.
What this means for investors
Investors cheered AT&T’s results despite a slight revenue miss. More important was strong subscriber growth, especially as investors eyed the upcoming initial quarterly report from Space Exploration Technologies (NASDAQ:SPCX).
SpaceX’s Starlink service could be a big disruptor for the existing wireless market, but today’s results indicate AT&T isn’t seeing it yet. Investors should continue to watch how space-based broadband develops, though. SpaceX isn’t the only player in the game. AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) is also building a satellite network to provide broadband directly to smartphones anywhere on Earth.
For now, the focus was on AT&T’s continued growth. The company gained 432,000 postpaid phone net subscribers during the quarter, surpassing Wall Street’s expectations of 338,500 additions.
With competition coming from satellite-based solutions, though, AT&T investors should closely follow what SpaceX says about its existing Starlink business when it reports earnings on Aug. 4.
Should you buy stock in AT&T right now?
Before you buy stock in AT&T, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and AT&T wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut are built for long-term growth and could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $370,332!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,272,280!*
That performance is why people listen. With a track record of beating the S&P 500 by 4x, Stock Advisor offers a distinct advantage. Don’t miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built for the long haul.