The FINANCIAL — T-Mobile US, Inc. on October 24 reported third quarter 2016 results which again showed that superior customer metrics are driving industry-leading financial results.
In the third quarter of 2016, T-Mobile added 2.0 million total net customers while delivering 13% year-over-year growth in service revenue, $366 million in Net Income, and $2.6 billion in Adjusted EBITDA.
“That’s 14 quarters in a row that T-Mobile has won share from the competition,” said John Legere, President and CEO of T-Mobile. “The Un-carrier is delivering. We took share and grew our customer base while producing both financial growth and shareholder value. Most importantly, we are delivering results for both customers and shareholders alike.”
Industry-Leading Customer Growth
The Un-carrier strategy continues to be a winning formula for the Company. In the third quarter of 2016, T-Mobile added 2.0 million net customers, bringing its total customer count to more than 69 million. T-Mobile continues to take market share and attract customers from the competition with a differentiated brand and incredible network experience. This was the fourteenth consecutive quarter in which the Company has generated more than 1 million net customer additions.
T-Mobile expects to lead the industry in branded postpaid phone net additions for the 11th consecutive quarter. The Company saw continued growth in branded postpaid phone customers with net additions of 851,000 in the third quarter of 2016. The increase was primarily due to the introduction of the T-Mobile ONE plans, the launch of the iPhone 7 in the quarter and an increase in branded prepaid customer migrations to postpaid plans. Branded postpaid net customer additions were 969,000 in the third quarter of 2016.
In addition to postpaid growth, T-Mobile continues to lead the industry in growing its prepaid business, which is fueled by a thriving MetroPCS brand. Branded prepaid net customer additions in the third quarter of 2016 were 684,000, which was the second best quarterly performance in Company history. T-Mobile is the only provider to grow both postpaid and prepaid for the past 13 quarters in a row. Wholesale net customer additions were 317,000 in the third quarter of 2016.
In addition to attracting customers, T-Mobile is also keeping them longer. Branded postpaid phone churn was 1.32% in the third quarter of 2016, up 5 basis points compared to 1.27% in the second quarter of 2016 and down 14 basis points compared to 1.46% in the third quarter of 2015. Year-over-year, branded postpaid phone churn was lower as a result of the sale of marketing and distribution rights to certain existing T-Mobile co-branded customers to a current MVNO partner, as well as increased customer satisfaction and loyalty from ongoing improvements to network quality, customer service, and the overall value of the Company’s offerings in the marketplace. On a pro-forma basis, had the MVNO Transaction closed on July 1, 2016, reported branded postpaid phone churn would have been 1.20% in the third quarter of 2016. Branded prepaid churn was 3.82% in the third quarter of 2016, compared to 3.91% in the second quarter of 2016 and 4.09% in the third quarter of 2015, according to T-Mobile.
Translating Customer Growth into Financial Growth
In addition to strong customer growth, T-Mobile delivered outstanding financial results in the third quarter of 2016 and expects to once again lead the industry in year-over-year percentage growth in service revenue and total revenue.
Service revenues for the third quarter of 2016 grew by 13% year-over-year, primarily due to continued growth in T-Mobile’s customer base. This is expected to mark the tenth consecutive quarter that T-Mobile has led the industry in year-over-year service revenue percentage growth. T-Mobile’s total revenues for the third quarter of 2016 grew by 18% year-over-year, which is also expected to lead the industry for the thirteenth time in the past fourteen quarters.
Branded postpaid phone Average Revenue per User (ARPU) of $48.15 in the third quarter of 2016 was up 2.2% sequentially and generally stable year-over-year. Excluding the impact of Data Stash, branded postpaid phone ARPU was up 1.6% sequentially as the impact of the T-Mobile ONE rate plans and the MVNO Transaction more than offset continued strategic focus on family plan penetration and promotional activity. Excluding the impact of Data Stash, branded postpaid phone ARPU was up 1.5% year-over-year due primarily to growth in insurance plans, higher data attach rates and the MVNO Transaction, partially offset by the family plan penetration and promotional activity. Branded postpaid Average Billings per User (ABPU) was $63.38 in the third quarter of 2016. Excluding the impact of Data Stash, branded postpaid ABPU was up 0.8% sequentially and 1.5% year-over-year. Branded postpaid customers per account grew to 2.78 in the third quarter of 2016, up from 2.64 in the second quarter of 2016 and 2.48 in the third quarter of 2015. The sequential increase was primarily due to the MVNO Transaction and the year-over-year increase was primarily due to ongoing service promotions targeting families, increased penetration of mobile broadband devices and the MVNO Transaction.
Net income was $366 million, up from $225 million in the second quarter of 2016 and up from $138 million in the third quarter of 2015. Net income in the third quarter of 2016 included after-tax spectrum gains of $122 million. Earnings per share (EPS) in the third quarter of 2016 was $0.42, compared to EPS of $0.25 in the second quarter of 2016 and $0.15 in the third quarter of 2015. The after-tax impact of spectrum gains on EPS in the third quarter of 2016 was $0.15. The year-over-year increases in net income and EPS resulted primarily from higher service and equipment revenues due to growth in the customer base and the spectrum gains, partially offset by higher operating and non-operating expenses. The increase in operating expenses resulted from a rise in cost of equipment due to an increase in devices sold and average cost per device, increased SG&A expense due to strategic investments to support growing the customer base, and higher D&A expense related to leased devices and the build-out of the LTE network. The increase in non-operating expenses was due primarily to higher income tax and interest expense. Net income as a percentage of service revenues was 5.1% in the third quarter of 2016 compared to 2.2% in the third quarter of 2015.
In the third quarter of 2016, Adjusted EBITDA increased by 38% year-over-year to $2.630 billion. Adjusted EBITDA in the third quarter of 2016 included spectrum gains of $199 million. The year-over-year increase was primarily due to higher service revenues from growth in the customer base, spectrum gains and synergies realized from the MetroPCS business combination, partially offset by higher SG&A expenses due to strategic investments to support growing the customer base. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 37% for the third quarter of 2016 compared to 30% in the prior year. Excluding the spectrum gains, Adjusted EBITDA margin was 34% for the third quarter of 2016 compared to 30% in the prior year. Adjusted EBITDA margin is calculated as Adjusted EBITDA divided by service revenues.
The aggregate net impact from leasing and Data Stash on Adjusted EBITDA in the third quarter of 2016 was $294 million, including lease revenues of $353 million offset by the non-cash impact from Data Stash of $59 million.
Net cash provided by operating activities was $1.7 billion in the third quarter of 2016, up from $1.5 billion in the third quarter of 2015. Free cash flow was $581 million in the third quarter of 2016, compared to $411 million in the third quarter of 2015. Adjusted free cash flow was $624 million in the third quarter of 2016 compared to $487 million in the third quarter of 2015.
Fastest 4G LTE Network – Again
T-Mobile was once again the fastest 4G LTE network in the nation based on both download and upload speeds from millions of user-generated tests. This is the eleventh consecutive quarter that T-Mobile has held that title. The Company continued to enhance the coverage breadth and depth of its 4G LTE network to support customer growth in the third quarter of 2016 and beyond. These enhancements included expanding its 4G LTE network coverage to 312 million people, further deploying Wideband LTE to 231 million people, and leading the industry in technology advancements like VoLTE, Carrier Aggregation, 4×4 MIMO, and 256 QAM.
T-Mobile is also continuing to build out Extended Range LTE, which operates on the Company’s low-band 700 MHz A-Block spectrum, to enhance coverage and in-building performance. Extended Range LTE currently covers more than 225 million people in 366 market areas. In the third quarter of 2016, T-Mobile closed on several previously announced transactions that increased its total low-band spectrum holdings to 260 million POPs. The Company expects to close on additional previously announced transactions in the fourth quarter of 2016, bringing its total low-band spectrum holdings to 272 million POPs upon closing.
Cash capital expenditures reflect T-Mobile’s continued investment in the expansion of its 4G LTE network. In the third quarter of 2016, cash capital expenditures were $1.2 billion, down from $1.3 billion in the second quarter of 2016 and up from $1.1 billion in the third quarter of 2015.
Raising Customer Outlook and Narrowing Adjusted EBITDA Target for 2016
T-Mobile expects to drive further customer momentum while delivering strong growth in Adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow in 2016.
Branded postpaid net customer additions for the full-year 2016 are now expected to be between 3.7 and 3.9 million, an increase from the previous guidance range of 3.4 to 3.8 million.
T-Mobile is not able to forecast net income on a forward looking basis without unreasonable efforts due to the high variability and difficulty in predicting certain items that affect GAAP net income including, but not limited to, income tax expense, stock based compensation expense, interest expense and interest income.
For the full-year 2016, T-Mobile now expects Adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $10.2 to $10.4 billion, raising and narrowing the previous guidance range of $9.8 to $10.1 billion. This guidance includes the aggregate net impact from leasing and Data Stash, now expected to be approximately $1.0 to $1.1 billion, and $0.8 billion related to spectrum gains recognized in the first nine months of 2016.
Cash capital expenditures for the full-year 2016 are expected to be in the range of $4.5 to $4.7 billion, narrowing the previous guidance range of $4.5 to $4.8 billion.
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