Sprint Nextel’s First-Quarter Loss Widens

Wireless carrier Sprint Nextel Corp. said Monday it had a larger first-quarter deficit as revenue fell, it lost more than a million subscribers and it absorbed charges for severance and other costs, the Associated Press reported.

Sprint lost $505 million, or 18 cents per share, compared with a loss of $211 million, or 7 cents, a year ago.

Revenue fell 7.5%, to $9.3 billion, Sprint said.

Not including a number of one-time charges, including $231 million for severance and asset impairment and $86 million in deal-related costs, the company said it earned 4 cents per share, compared to 18 cents per share in the year-ago quarter.

Sprint, which has struggled since buying Nextel Communications in 2005, said its total subscriber base fell by 1.09 million to 52.8 million, including the loss of 1.07 million post-paid customers who pay a monthly bill, AP reported.