Ticker Move of the Day: T -5.27% as SpaceX pushes to launch 4th wireless carrier
AT&T shares slid 5.27% in regular trading on October 23 as Bloomberg reported that SpaceX is in talks for access to approximately 80,000 U.S. cell tower sites to build a fourth nationwide wireless carrier. The talks with major tower companies including Crown Castle represent SpaceX's latest move to complement its earlier October acquisition of 800 MHz spectrum from Grain Management. This fresh competitive threat compounds pressure on AT&T and peers T-Mobile and Verizon, all down sharply in both early and regular trading. While no tower leases are yet signed and the spectrum deal closes only in the first half of 2027, the convergence of SpaceX's satellite infrastructure, spectral assets, and tower access negotiations suggests a material competitive test ahead for legacy carriers. Investors are now focused on whether SpaceX can convert tower discussions into binding contracts and how quickly Starlink Mobile can operationalize as a terrestrial competitor.