Author Archives: Scalper1

T-Mobile Q4 Earnings Beat, Subscriber Guidance Seen Conservative

T-Mobile US ( TMUS ) early Wednesday reported Q4 earnings above expectations and forecast 2.9 million postpaid phone subscriber additions in 2016 at the midpoint of its guidance range, down from 4.5 million adds last year, amid intensified competition in wireless services. T-Mobile stock was up 3% in early trading after the company posted its latest results. The wireless firms’ subscriber guidance is “likely conservative,” Jefferies analyst Mike McCormack said in a research report. “The company raised net add expectations throughout 2015 and is likely taking a conservative approach (for 2016), particularly given aggressive promotions from Sprint.” T-Mobile has gained market share vs.  AT&T ( T ), Verizon Communications ( VZ ) and Sprint ( S ) with its aggressive, Uncarrier-branded  promotions. T-Mobile, controlled by Germany-based  Deutsche Telekom ( DTEGY ), said December-quarter EPS minus items nearly tripled to 34 cents from 12 cents in the year-earlier quarter vs. analysts estimates of 15-cent profit. Revenue rose 1.2% to $8.25 billion, edging the consensus estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. For 2016, T-Mobile forecast adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) of $9.4 billion at the midpoint of its guidance, below analyst expectations. T-Mobile had adjusted EBITDA of $7.4 billion in 2015. It did not provide 2016 revenue guidance in its earnings release. Phone leasing plans that have become standard for wireless service providers have lowered equipment revenue but boosted  EBITDA. T-Mobile said it added 2.06 million subscribers overall in Q4, including postpaid, prepaid and wholesale customers — about the same as Q4 2014. T-Mobile reported “bad debt expense” of $228 million in the quarter, up 52% from the year-earlier quarter. T-Mobile preannounced at a Jan. 6 conference that it added 917,000 postpaid phone subscribers in Q4.  Verizon   said it   added 449,000 postpaid phone customers in Q4 — those billed monthly and more lucrative than prepaid users — while Sprint added 366,000. AT&T in Q4 lost postpaid subscribers for the fifth quarter in a row, shedding 342,000.

Market Lab Report – Premarket Pulse 2/17/16

Major averages rose on mixed volume. The higher volume on the NASDAQ Composite was easy to achieve as Friday’s volume was lower than normal given the 3-day weekend. The bounce in leading names such as AMZN and GOOGL on declining volume has been anemic relative to the bounce in the major averages. A wedging pattern is forming for both names, though should the bounce continue a bit longer, such names would likely catch up to the rising market as institutions tend to favor such big cap names as safer places to invest their capital. Nevertheless, the bounce remains suspect thus keeping a close eye on any potential short-sale candidates is prudent. Futures are up almost 1% at the time of this writing as the Federal Reserve’s minutes from their last meeting are due for release at 2 PM EST. The hope is that the minutes will show more evidence of a pause in rate hikes. Meanwhile, other central banks continue to ease as signs of any meaningful economy recovery remain elusive.