SAN FRANCISCO-AirTouch Communications Inc. reported a record-breaking fourth quarter and year ended Dec. 31 in terms of proportionate net income, revenue and customer growth.
Net income for the quarter showed an increase of nearly 600 percent-from $14 million, or 3 cents per share in 1996, to $97 million, or 19 cents per share at the end of 1997. The company’s annual net income grew 120 percent from $179 million, or 36 cents per share in 1996, to $394 million, or 78 cents per share in 1997.
Bolstered by the 1 million wireless customers AirTouch added during the recent quarter, the company reported revenues of $1.3 billion, up 18 percent over the same period in 1996. AirTouch added 2.7 million new cellular, personal communications services and paging customers during 1997, and reported a year-over-year revenue increase of 25 percent-from $3.9 billion to $4.9 billion.
In the United States, AirTouch reported its best-ever performance, adding 408,000 cellular subscribers during the fourth quarter. AirTouch added 906,000 U.S. cellular customers last year-serving 4.3 million American cellular customers at year end-up 27 percent from 1996. The company also added 246,000 U.S. paging customers last year, for a total of 3.1 million.
“This outstanding quarter capped an incredible year,” said Sam Ginn, chairman and chief executive officer of AirTouch Communications. “At the beginning of 1997 we said we’d set records… We were right.”
AirTouch’s 1998 financial outlook excluded the $5.7 billion plan with U S West Media Group to acquire the company’s cellular and PCS properties, which will make AirTouch the second largest wireless provider in the United States, the company said. The merger is expected to be finalized mid-1998.
