AT&T calmly and steadily growing, as it awaits LTE and T-Mobile approval

AT&T is adding new iPhone customers, growing its Android base still faster, is on-track with its planned LTE launch later this summer and feeling confident that its proposed $39 billion purchase of competitor T-Mobile will receive the necessary federal approvals. As expected.

The nation's second-largest carrier also seems to be treading water for a moment, waiting for that rubber stamp and the excitement sure to follow its LTE rollout. Its second-quarter earnings call this morning lacked some hallmark details — namely, impassioned talk about iPhone sales and what it's doing to rectify service complaints — of previous earnings calls.

"Steady as she goes," was the assessment from Bernstein Research Senior Analyst Craig Moffet in a research note, and indeed the numbers were positive, if tame — particularly without the context of results from its three major competitors, who have yet to make their announcements. (Verizon is next in line, announcing tomorrow.)

During its second quarter, AT&T:

• saw consolidated revenue rise 2.2% year over year, to $31.5 billion;

• added 1.1 million wireless subscribers, for a total of 98.6 million;

• activated 3.6 million iPhones (compared to 3.2 million during the same quarter a year ago);

• sold 5.6 million smartphones;

• saw sales of Android phone double since a year ago (when frankly Android still wasn't an enormous priority) and account for 40% of smartphone sales;

• added 545,000 "branded computing devices," 377,000 of which were tablets;

• and saw churn rise to 1.43%, from 1.29% a year ago and 1.36% a quarter earlier.

"It isn't all about the iPhone. Or even about whether or not AT&T's acquisition of T-Mobile is or isn't approved ... " wrote Moffett. "Perhaps the biggest issue is the overall economy."

Most significantly, he added, "AT&T appears to be adapting to the loss of iPhone exclusivity relatively well, with stable churn rates and still passably strong net subscriber growth, and with in-line or better results everywhere else across the wireless business."

AT&T executives said they were confident that the T-Mobile deal would go through, with the question being more when than if. This, despite two recent hiccups: Christine Varney, the top antitrust official at the U.S. Justice Department leaving her post for a law job, and Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) sending a 7-page letter to the DOJ, saying that after careful review of the AT&T proposal, he believes it would "likely cause substantial harm to competition and consumers, would be contrary to antitrust law and not in the public interest," and therefore should be "blocked."

"We have a great deal of respect for Sen. Kohl, and have had many candid discussions with him," said AT&T CFO John Stephens. "This just happens to be an area where we disagree."

Stephens added that he expected neither even to have a "material impact" on the final decision.

"We delivered another strong wireless quarter in a very competitive environment," Stephens said in conclusion, adding, "We are very comfortable with the pace of progress [regarding the T-Mobile deal] and remain confident of its approval."