CEO’s deal-making stature is on the line

AT&T boss Randall Stephenson is one for two in pulling off major deals.

Over his 10 years as CEO, Stephenson acquired DirecTV without a hitch for $49 billion in July 2015 — but saw regulators block his 2011 attempt to buy T-Mobile USA for $39 billion.

AT&T walked away from the T-Mobile deal after the Justice Department sued to block it.

Stephenson suffered for the miss: His pay package fell 18.5 percent that year, or by $5 million, to $22 million.

Which brings the telecom CEO to his current decision: to fight or settle the Justice Department’s suit to block the Time Warner deal. Every indication is that the 57-year-old Okie will fight.

While another regulatory loss won’t knock him from atop the company, analysts said, it would greatly tarnish his reputation as a dealmaker.

To get the deal done, AT&Tmay have to agree not only not to withhold Time Warner content from other distributors but also to offer it on reasonable terms — even if future price hikes require regulatory approval, analysts said.

Stephenson, during a Monday afternoon conference call, said that with Netflix and Amazon giving HBO stiff competition, AT&T wouldn’t be able to simply jack up prices.

“Market dynamics would not allow for higher prices [even if that was AT&T’s intent],” he said.

If the Justice Department demanded a harsher remedy, Stephenson could distribute AT&T’s DirecTV unit to shareholders for AT&T shares, one Wall Streeter said. AT&T could then issue new shares to buy Charter and Sirius, thus forming a company that “would look much as Comcast does now,” the Wall Streeter added.