SpaceX Cell Site Push Sends AT&T and Telecom Stocks Down 6% While Tower Owners Surge

AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile shares fell sharply Friday after Bloomberg reported that SpaceX is in talks with cellular infrastructure companies to secure access to at least 80,000 US cell sites for its Starlink Mobile service, a move that would position Elon Musk's company as a full fourth nationwide wireless carrier. The 80,000 figure represents roughly half of all purpose-built towers in the country. SpaceX has also recently acquired a nationwide low-band wireless spectrum portfolio, underscoring the depth of its terrestrial ambitions beyond satellite connectivity.

AT&T fell about 4.3% to $21.76 in premarket trading before closing the session down roughly 6%, putting it 16% lower for the year. T-Mobile sank approximately 5% in premarket and also finished the day down about 6%, bringing its year-to-date loss to around 28%. Verizon slid about 3% to 4%. The selloff compounded damage from October 9, when SpaceX's spectrum acquisition deal sent T-Mobile to its worst single-day decline since 2013 and AT&T to its worst since 2000.

Tower operators moved sharply in the opposite direction on expectations that SpaceX would become a new anchor tenant. Crown Castle rose as much as 10.5% and American Tower gained about 7.3%, with SpaceX itself up roughly 2%. Citi analysts said they do not expect SpaceX to launch a national wireless service before 2029, but noted that reports of talks with infrastructure owners raise questions about that timeline moving faster.

Analyst price targets on AT&T preferred shares were also revised lower. The consensus target on T.PRC was cut 16.79% to $20.08 from $24.13, and the target on T.PRA was lowered 17.35% to $21.26 from $25.72, both compared with June 2026 estimates. Separately, KDC is pursuing $3.5 billion in financing for AT&T's large headquarters campus in Plano, Texas.