AT&T gains customers in 4Q, posts big loss

(AP)—The launch of the iPhone 5 helped AT&T attract more new customers in the holiday quarter than it has in three years, but it posted a big loss because of an annual adjustment to its pension obligations.

AT&T Inc. says it added a net 780,000 new customers on contract-based plans from October to December, its best result in three years.

The Dallas-based company's quarterly loss was $3.86 billion, or 68 cents per share. That compares with a loss of $6.68 billion, or $1.12 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding special items, AT&T earned 44 cents per share, 2 cents short of the average analyst estimate as polled by FactSet.

Revenue was $32.6 billion, up a hair from $32.5 billion a year ago. It slightly exceeded analyst estimates of $32.2 billion.