New York, June 1, 2026, 08:52 EDT
AT&T Inc. shares dipped in premarket trading Monday, trailing the broader U.S. market. Investors are looking ahead to the telecom company’s next cash flow check and comments expected from CFO Pascal Desroches.
AT&T changed hands at $24.80 ahead of the NYSE open, off 0.3% from its last close. Shares of Verizon slipped roughly 0.4%, and T-Mobile US was down 0.9%. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF, tracking the wider market, ticked up.
June 1 isn’t on the 2026 NYSE holiday calendar, and the main session for the exchange is 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. That puts AT&T’s early trade ahead of regular hours, before the market set the main price for the day.
AT&T’s near-term story isn’t about the big AI rally sweeping the market. It’s about cash, which matters for investors in the high-dividend telecom. The company will release second-quarter results before the NYSE opens on July 22, followed by an 8:30 a.m. ET call.
AT&T held its second-quarter free cash flow forecast at $4.0 billion to $4.5 billion. Free cash flow, what’s left after running the business and paying for capital spending, matters for a company that’s building fiber, paying dividends, buying back shares, and working on debt.
AT&T’s Desroches will speak at the Mizuho Technology Conference on June 9. The company repeated in its statement that it is still on track to meet 2026 and longer-term targets, pointing to higher adjusted EBITDA and stronger free cash flow out to 2028.
Broader indexes traded higher. U.S. stock index futures moved up Monday as Nvidia and Microsoft got a lift from AI news, Reuters said. Investors also kept their eye on oil and U.S.-Iran tensions.
AT&T is focused on wireless, fiber and tackling its debt. For the first quarter, revenue was $31.5 billion, up 2.9% year over year. Adjusted earnings came in at 57 cents per share. Free cash flow was $2.5 billion, down from $3.1 billion, as the company increased capital spending.
AT&T said it picked up 584,000 advanced internet customers last quarter, about half on fiber and half on fixed wireless. The company added 294,000 postpaid phone subscribers too. AT&T reported 42% of its advanced home internet customers also used its wireless, which the company said shows some traction for its bundled fiber and mobile offer.
AT&T CEO John Stankey told investors on the April call there was “clear evidence” of progress on the company’s fiber and 5G strategy showing up in Q1. CFO Desroches kept the forecast for free cash flow this year at “$18 billion plus.” AT&T Investor Relations
Wall Street’s positive view is based on the bundle approach. J.P. Morgan’s Sebastiano Petti is sticking with an Overweight on AT&T and his $33 target for year-end, Barron’s reported in May. He pointed to fiber spending, the mix of wireless and home internet, and plans for higher EBITDA and free cash flow per share out to 2028.
Competitive signals are mixed. Verizon is still the main traditional rival in wireless and broadband. T-Mobile trades at a premium and grows faster, but all three stocks were down early Monday, even with the broader market finding some strength.
There’s risk on the table. If wireless service revenue at AT&T stalls, or churn ticks up, or if the fiber investment drags out, cash flow could get tight. The company still has big obligations, with about $23 billion spent to buy EchoStar spectrum for 5G. Reuters said the FCC cleared the deal in May.
The June 9 CFO spot is the next date for investors to watch, with July 22 looming larger. There’s pressure now for less talk of convergence and more evidence that the buildout is making money.
