Strong wireless growth contributed to AT&T reporting revenue that was slightly ahead of analysts’ estimates for the second quarter. However, profit was a lower than anticipated.

Total wireless revenue rose by 5.7 per cent to $17.3 billion. Particularly striking was a 19.8 per cent rise in wireless data revenue versus the same quarter a year ago, reaching $5.4 billion.

And the company reported 551,000 wireless postpaid net additions in the quarter, its best figure for four years. Its target had been 500,000 net additions.

However, the operator is still well behind the 941,000 net additions reported by rival Verizon Wireless.

AT&T’s LTE network rollout, which is ahead of schedule, contributed to the data revenue growth and the contract customer gains, it said.

Overall company revenues rose 1.6 per cent to $32.1 billion, slightly ahead of analysts’ estimates. Net income was $3.8 billion compared with $3.9 billion in the same quarter last year.

Price cuts enabled AT&T to report a record figure for smartphone sales during the quarter of 6.8 million units. This included a record number of Android devices sales. Smartphones accounted for 88 per cent of postpaid phone sales in Q2.

In addition, more than 35 per cent of AT&T’s postpaid smartphone subscribers now use an LTE device.

However, strong sales of discounted smartphones hit the wireless unit’s profit margin, which declined to 42.4 per cent from 45.8 per cent a year earlier, missing analyst estimates.

Meanwhile, landline revenue declined by 0.9 per cent to $14.8 billion. And operating income at the fixed unit was $1.6 billion, a fall of 15.8 per cent against Q2, 2012.

The bright spot for this business was U-verse, the operator’s landline TV, high-speed internet and VoIP business, which saw a 30 per cent increase in revenue.