The occasional mobile phone outage is something of a price we pay for modern life as we know it. Whether it’s inclement weather, mechanical failure, or something more esoteric and unfamiliar, sometimes the phone just doesn’t work. But today, subscribers across most of the major mobile carriers—Verizon (NYSE:VZ), AT&T (NYSE:T), and T-Mobile (NASDAQ:TMUS)—found themselves without service almost at the same time. All three were down in trading as a result. T-Mobile and Verizon were down fractionally, but AT&T was down nearly 3% in Thursday morning’s trading.
The first reports began with AT&T, who discovered that “thousands” of users were experiencing outages in calls and text messages alike. This also hit several major cities, including San Francisco, which reported that their emergency service operations were disrupted by the outage. AT&T responded, suggesting that users convert to Wi-Fi calling for the duration of the outage.
The outage continued well into the morning, and though reports have been on the decline since a little after 9:00 AM, thousands are still experiencing issues. However, the reports of outages didn’t stop there, as both Verizon and T-Mobile found their own systems affected and in large numbers. The issues seem largely limited to mobile phone connections, as most mobile internet users still seem to be connected.
So What Happened?
Perhaps the worst part about the situation is that no one really knows just what happened yet. Most reports note that the outages are still in the process of being resolved. While this is certainly doing a number on the stocks, at least for now, it’s likely that shares will recover as soon as the network does. Indeed, the companies’ underlying fundamentals remain largely intact.
Which Communications Stocks Are a Good Buy Right Now?
Turning to Wall Street, VZ stock is the laggard in the communication field right now, with this Moderate Buy-rated stock offering a 10.42% upside potential against its average price target of $44.83 per share. Meanwhile, AT&T stock is the leader, as it offers investors a 23.45% upside potential on an average price target of $20.32 per share.
