CluenexAT&T T
AT&T scores average on business quality (4.7 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What AT&T does
AT&T provides wireless and broadband services to millions of consumers and businesses, generating revenue primarily through monthly subscriptions and device financing plans. The company is currently directing $3 billion toward expanding key network services to defend its customer base against aggressive carrier promotions.
- What it does best
AT&T converts network investment into high free cash flow conversion, delivering an FCF margin of 49% that sits in the top decile of its sector. This scale creates a barrier where smaller rivals like GLIBA, struggling with a -20.7% ROE, cannot easily match heavy infrastructure spending.
- The main risk
A heavy debt load of $136.1 billion leaves the balance sheet vulnerable to shifting interest rates. With interest coverage at just 3.6x, a larger share of operating cash flow is tied up servicing obligations rather than funding growth or shareholder returns.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Gross margin rests at 59.7% while operating margin hits 20.6%, pointing to steady core efficiency. Margins remain stable, though heavy capital intensity prevents outsized scaling gains.
Switching costs protect the core subscriber base, backed by an operating margin of 20.6% that ranks in the top quartile of its sector. High capital intensity prevents new rivals from replicating its footprint quickly.
Revenue is growing at 2.7%, tracking modestly above recent flat historical periods. This pace crawls compared to broader market averages, highlighting a stagnant top line.
Total debt sits at $136.1 billion against $18.2 billion in cash, leaving interest coverage at 3.6x. Free cash flow came in at $17.6B, down from prior years, showing a softer financial baseline.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Our sealed record on T
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
AT&T scores average on the Cluenex quality check (4.7 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is fair, moat fair, growth slow and financial health fair.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Oct 21, 2026.
See T today
- Today's verdict on T, and why
- Fair value with cautious, base and optimistic cases
- The exact price that would change the verdict
- Which stocks each signal names, the night it fires
Cite this page: Cluenex, “AT&T (T)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/t/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.