AT&T to take $2.7B charge related to employee benefits

AT&T Inc. (T) said it will book $2.7 billion in a pretax, noncash charge for its fiscal fourth quarter as part of an accounting change in recognizing the impact of pension and other postretirement benefits. The company noted that the change will now post gains and losses in the year in which they are incurred and posted during the fourth quarter of that year rather than amortized over several years.
“AT&T expects the change to a market-based approach will result in simpler, more transparent financial results by linking results directly to current market returns, interest rates and health care costs,” the company noted in a press release. “The change will not impact AT&T’s cash flow or pension funding requirements.”
AT&T, which is scheduled to release Q4 2010 results on Jan. 27, said the $2.7 billion charge would result in an impact of 28 cents per share for stockholders.