US earnings calls, October 20-21, 2026: AT&T and Wabtec raise profit outlooks

AT&T, Wabtec and Weatherford raised parts of their fiscal year 2026 outlooks

• AT&T: the chief financial officer said AT&T now expects adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of around $2.40. The prior outlook was $2.25-$2.35. The chief financial officer said the main reason is lower depreciation expense related to held-for-sale accounting for AT&T Mexico. AT&T now expects cash taxes of around $750 million, down from $1 billion-$1.5 billion. It continues to expect free cash flow of at least $18 billion.
• Wabtec: the chief executive said Wabtec raised its adjusted EPS guidance to $10.85-$11.05 per share, up 22% at the midpoint. The chief financial officer said Wabtec raised revenue guidance by $110 million at the midpoint.
• Weatherford International: the chief financial officer said the company raised its adjusted free cash flow conversion outlook to the high 40% range, from the mid-to-high 40% range in July. The chief executive said this was the third raise this year.

Philip Morris International expects growth but points to the lower half of its EPS range

The chief financial officer said Philip Morris International forecasts fiscal year 2026 adjusted diluted EPS of $8.29 to $8.44. That equals 7.5% to 9.5% currency-neutral growth and approximately 10% to 12% dollar growth. The company considers delivery more likely at the midpoint or in the lower half of both brackets, because of higher U.S. investment and geopolitical costs. It forecasts organic net revenue growth of 5% to 7%. It expects calendar year 2026 cigarette volumes to decline by a level similar to the 1.2% year-to-date decline.

Several lenders built further interest rate increases into their outlooks

• Annaly Capital Management: the chief executive said markets are pricing nearly three additional 25-basis-point rate hikes by the Federal Reserve (Fed), the US central bank, through the end of 2027.
• OFG Bancorp: the chief financial officer said it expects net interest margin (NIM), the gap between what a bank earns on loans and pays on deposits, to remain near 5.25% in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026. This assumes one additional 25-basis-point hike in December.
• Metropolitan Commercial Bank: the chief financial officer said its forecast assumed Fed rate hikes in December 2026 and March 2027. It forecast a fourth-quarter NIM of approximately 4.15%-4.20%.
• Old National Bancorp: the chief executive said it expects the current rate environment to be modestly helpful to NIM.