WINNIPEG – Profits at MTS Allstream fell 24.3% in the third quarter, though the company said Thursday that it is still on-track to meet its updated financial outlook for 2011.
Net income for the quarter ended September 30 was $37.0 million, compared to $48.9 million in the same period last year, while operating revenues were down 1.7% to $443.2 million from $451.0 million in the third quarter of 2010. EBITDA dropped 8.1% to $146.9 million this quarter, compared to $159.9 million year-over-year.
"While year-over-year consolidated results are negatively impacted by one-time recoveries in the third quarter of 2010, the Company delivered another strong quarter with solid performance at both MTS and Allstream”, said CEO Pierre Blouin, in a statement. “We achieved strong revenue growth in the third quarter from each of our strategic lines of business. We are delivering on our strategic objectives and expect to meet the improved 2011 outlook ranges we provided last quarter."
The Winnipeg-based based company reported solid wireless, broadband and converged IP revenue growth in the third quarter, which was offset by declines in revenues from its traditional services such as local access, long distance and legacy data services.
At quarter end, wireless subscribers totalled 494,462, a 3.8% increase over the prior year. MTS Allstream also reported 93,244 IPTV subscribers, a 4.1% year-over-year increase, and noted that nearly 60% of these customers subscribed to the company’s premium IPTV service ‘Ultimate TV’, which generates higher ARPU when compared to its ‘Classic TV’ service.
High-speed Internet subscribers totalled 187,604 at quarter end, an increase of 2.2% from the prior year.
The company's Board of Directors declared a cash dividend of $0.425 per share for the fourth quarter of 2011, which is payable on January 13, 2012 to shareholders of record on December 15, 2011.
