AT & T media bets lead the title in its worst year since 2008

When contacted by CNBC, an AT & T spokesperson cited a previous comment by Randall Stephenson, CEO of Wednesday, saying he was confident about the results of the third quarter and stressed the need to stabilize the EBITDA broadband and television activities of the company and Mexico.

The agreement with DirecTV prompted AT & T to go shopping in the media and advertising sector, with smaller deals in addition to Time Warner. Earlier this year, it acquired the majority stake in the Chernin Group in Otter Media, a joint venture between the two companies. She also bought the appNexus advertising and analysis company.

AT & T plans to continue its media gambling. He announced this month that he would be launching a streaming service to compete with Netflix by the end of 2019. This streaming service will include HBO shows as well as other programs from the rest of WarnerMedia.

It also adds subscribers to its DirecTV Now service. However, streaming subscribers are generally considered less profitable than satellite subscribers.

AT & T is trading in correct territory this year, but Verizon has grown nearly 10% over the same period. Virtually all major Wall Street analysts have a sale or holding rating on the stock, including MoffettNathanson.

"Many people thought that AT & T was the visionary and that they were making visionary bets on the media ecosystem at a time when Verizon was trapped in quicksand," Moffett said. . "Two years later, Verizon seems to have been the most careful of the two."

Moffett said the company would soften its advertising strategy and its aggressive media instead of cash to satisfy the bond market.

"With a leverage effect about four times higher than EBITDA, bond market needs must now take precedence over those of the stock market," said the analyst in a note released on Wednesday. "This simple statement of priorities is particularly useful given the bewildering complexity of Time Warner's inclusion and the reshuffling of the third AT & T segment in as many years." Prioritizing the bond market means generate cash flow … even if it means sacrificing growth. "