AT&T to take $130 million charge related to voluntary retirement

The retirements were made under the terms of a special offer allowing for lumpsum distributions and enhanced payments, the telecom company said in a filing on Tuesday.

AT&T also said it expected costs related to the acquisition of Mexican wireless company, Iusacell, to hurt its earnings in the first quarter.

The U.S. company agreed in November to buy Iusacell, Mexico's third-largest wireless operator, for $1.7 billion to grab a slice of a market with lower cellular penetration than the United States and faster potential growth.

AT&T also warned of pressure on its margins in the first quarter ending March, saying it expected margins in both its wireless and wireline businesses to be lower.

The sale of Connecticut wireline properties, the exiting of some low-margin businesses and non-cash changes in benefit expenses are expected to hurt margins in the wireline business, AT&T said.

Margins in the wireless business are expected to come under pressure partly due to the adoption of the Mobile Share Value plans, it said.

AT&T forecast net addition of about 400,000 postpaid customers in the current quarter. The company had net added 625,000 postpaid subscribers in the year-earlier quarter, marking its strongest postpaid growth in the first quarter in five years.

AT&T continues to expect its acquisition of satellite TV company DirecTV to close in the first half of 2015. The deal, valued at $48.5 million, is awaiting regulatory approval.

AT&T's shares closed at $32.78 on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday.

(Reporting by Lehar Maan in Bengaluru; Editing by Kirti Pandey)