AT&T, Verizon gain in wake of big telecom merger deals

Major telecom providers are higher today in the wake of some multibillion-dollar merger/acquisition activity in the sector.
AT&T (NYSE:T) is up 2.8% on the day as it hunts for its first daily gain since Nov. 12 (it's declined or finished flat for five straight sessions, and wrapped Friday at a 10-year low). And Verizon (NYSE:VZ) is up 2%, looking to reverse four straight down sessions. Dish Network (NASDAQ:DISH) is up 0.8%; among the upcoming "Big Four," only T-Mobile (TMUS -0.5%) is lower.
That follows some big Merger Monday deals. KKR has come through with a $12 billion offer for Telecom Italia (TIIAY +29.4%). And Ericsson (ERIC -6.4%) has come to its biggest deal ever, to acquire service provider Vonage (VG +25.9%) for an enterprise value of $6.2 billion.
Speaking of the deal for Vonage: Fellow unified communications firm Avaya Holdings (NYSE:AVYA) was up 11% at the open after its earnings beat, and is now 22% higher on the day with some likely M&A enthusiasm built in.
Verizon (VZ +2%) has its own big deal in the works - California's PUC has signed off on a $6 billion acquisition of TracFone Wireless (AMX -0.6%), America's leading prepaid/value mobile provider.