Telus's quarterly earnings double, with adjusted income up and stable revenue growth amid market shifts
Telus Corp. reported a significant increase in net income attributable to common shares in its third quarter, despite a decline in new customer additions compared to last year.
In an article by BNN Bloomberg, the telecommunications company’s net income rose to $280m, marking a 105.9 percent increase from the same quarter in 2023. Earnings per diluted share for the period ending September 30 were 19 cents, up from nine cents a year ago.
Adjusted net income reached $413m, representing a 10.7 percent year-over-year rise from $373m in the same quarter last year.
Telus reported operating revenue and other income of $5.1bn, up 1.8 percent from the previous year.
During the third quarter, Telus added 347,000 net new customers, reflecting a 14.5 percent decline from the previous year.
This total includes 130,000 new mobile phone subscribers and 34,000 internet customers, down by 30,000 and 3,000, respectively, from last year’s figures.
The mobile phone churn rate increased slightly to 1.09 percent from 1.03 percent in the third quarter of 2023, with a postpaid mobile churn rate of 0.90 percent in the latest quarter.
Telus attributed the increase to “more aggressive marketing and promotional pricing” from competitors, which prompted customers to switch providers.
However, Telus said its “focus on customer retention” and “successful promotions and bundled offerings” helped mitigate these effects.
Average revenue per user (ARPU) for mobile phones in the third quarter was $58.85, a decrease of $2.09, or 3.4 percent, from the previous year.
Telus attributed this decline to customer shifts toward base rate plans with lower prices, along with a reduction in overage and roaming revenues.
Despite this, the company noted that an increasing number of customers are adopting unlimited data and Canada-US plans, which provide more consistent and stable monthly ARPU.
