By Teresa von Fuchs
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
AT&T announced that profits for the first quarter rose 22% from the same period last year; the country’s largest telecom reported profits of $3.46 billion, or 57 cents per share for the quarter, up from $2.85 billion, or 45 cents a share for Q1 2007. The company said its strong performance was due to continued growth in its wireless and enterprise services divisions.
Profit before 1-time charges, such as merger-related costs and severance charges, rose to 74 cents from 65 cents a year earlier. And quarterly revenue rose just over 6% to $30.7 billion.
The carrier said it added 1.3 million net wireless subscribers during the quarter.
“We delivered an excellent first quarter and a solid start to the year,” said AT&T’s Chairman and CEO Randall Stephenson, in a statement. “AT&T's goal is to innovate and lead in a communications world driven by mobility and interactivity…The future of wireless has never been more promising, and I am very pleased that through our transaction with Aloha Partners and our successful bids in the recently completed auction, we have assembled the industry's premier, high-quality wireless spectrum position.”