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AT&T to Expand Fiber-Optic Service

Zacks Equity Research

With the upsurge in demand for high speed Internet, AT&T Inc. (T) remains focused on tapping potential opportunities by expanding its Fiber networks. The company is reportedly expanding its Fiber Optic network services in six additional cities in North Carolina. Aside from Google Inc. (GOOG), AT&T is another large carrier with plans for high speed Internet expansion in North Carolina.

The company boasts the best Internet speeds in the industry as it is the only U.S. carrier that provides 4G network through both Long Term Evolution (:LTE) and High-Speed Packet Access Plus (HSPA+) technologies. As a part of its project VIP initiative, AT&T is seeking to expand its fiber network to 1 million additional customer locations by 2015.

This project underlines the company’s efforts to meet the growing demand for high-speed Internet. We believe that this investment program will provide AT&T with a high-potential growth platform for revenues and earnings.

AT&T expects to expand U-verse services – delivered through Fiber Optic connections – to 8.5 million new customer locations and broadband services to 57 million users, covering 75% of the company’s wireline footprint by the end of 2015.

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Apart from an advanced Internet service, the company is running ahead of schedule in 4G LTE service deployment and expects to cover 300 million users by mid 2014.To support these services, the company offers several 4G LTE smartphones and tablets.

Smartphone sales were solid at $7.9 million in the quarter, resulting in higher data usage. As of Dec 31, 2013, smartphone comprised 93% of all post-paid sales.

AT&T currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Other Stocks

Other stocks that can be considered in the telecom sector include SK Telecom Co. Ltd. (SKM) and Shenandoah Telecommunications Co. (SHEN). Both stocks carry a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Read the Full Research Report on T
Read the Full Research Report on GOOG
Read the Full Research Report on SKM
Read the Full Research Report on SHEN


Zacks Investment Research