Pimco Funds Buy $2.9 Billion Wireless Stake From AT&T Pension

With interest rates near zero, Pacific Investment Management Co. has unearthed $2.9 billion of high-yielding securities from an unusual source -– AT&T Inc.’s employee pension plan.

In late September, the retirement plan sold a third of its preferred stake in AT&T’s wireless unit to a group of Pimco mutual funds, according to a regulatory filing last week. The wireless preferred shares, previously held solely by the pension plan, feature a 7% annual distribution.

Fixed-income managers are searching for yield in the wake of promises by the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates low for years. More than half of ...