US telecom stocks fall as Comcast's spin-off plan fuels competition fears

AT&T

Yesterday 18:09

Updates
** Shares of U.S. telecom companies fall after Comcast CMCSA.O unveils plans to split into two publicly traded companies
** Verizon VZ.N falls 6.5% to $43.52; AT&T T.N slips 4.8% to $21.63, T-Mobile TMUS.O slides 4.3% to $174.75

    ** Comcast's planned split will separate its cash-generating broadband arm from a media and entertainment business that is under pressure
  
** "The market believes that Comcast just made a really good move," says John Deal, managing director of capital markets at Post Oak Group

     ** Investors are betting that Comcast could take a bigger slice of the pie from companies such as VZ and TMUS, Deal adds
  

     ** CMCSA stock rises 7.3% to $24.85
  
** Charter Communications CHTR.O jumps 11.6% to $149.22; Bloomberg News reported last week CHTR was exploring a mobile phone partnership with SpaceX in the U.S.

(Reporting by Anzar Mehraj and Niket Nishant in Bengaluru)
((Anzar.Mehraj@thomsonreuters.com;))