Sprint Nextel racks up $1.3B loss in 4th quarter

Sprint Nextel Corp., the country’s third largest wireless carrier, on Thursday said it lost $1.3 billion in its fourth quarter, about the same as a year ago, as it revamped its network.

The company’s focus is on its long-term turnaround rather than on short-term results. Sprint is selling 70 percent of itself to Japanese carrier Softbank Corp. for $20 billion. That deal is expected to close this summer, and provide Sprint with a much-needed infusion of capital.

With Softbank’s backing, Sprint has struck a deal to buy out the other shareholders of Clearwire Corp., which operates a wireless data network. That should give Sprint more space on the airwaves and allow it to offer high broadband speeds.