Canadian operator Bell Canada reported second-quarter revenues down 0.5 percent to CAD 4.34 billion, hurt by a slowdown at its wireline activities. EBITDA was 3.7 percent higher at CAD 1.72 billion, thanks to growth at its mobile and broadcast businesses. The holding company BCE's net profit was up 31 percent year-on-year to CAD 773 million thanks to positive tax and one-time items, and operating cash flow jumped 38 percent to CAD 1.90 billion.
Its mobile unit Bell Wireless grew service revenues 6.3 percent to CAD 1.25 billion and EBITDA by 20.9 percent to CAD 556 million, helped by tight control of customer acquisition costs and device subsidies and reduced marketing and promotional activity. The mobile operator added a net 102,067 new postpaid customers in the three months, while losing 5,859 prepaid users, to finish June with a total base of 7.45 million, up 2.3 percent from a year earlier. Growing use of data services pushed blended ARPU 4.5 percent higher to CAD 55.37 per month. LTE coverage reached 46 percent of the population at the end of June, and 80 percent could access the dual-carrier HSPA service.
Bell Wireline revenue fell 3.9 percent to CAD 2.53 billion, and its EBITDA decreased 5.9 percent to CAD 1.01 billion. Its broadband customer base fell by 664 in Q2, and Bell shed another 119,545 fixed lines in the period. TV customers grew by 16,758 to 2.11 million, as growth at the fibre service offset losses in satellite.
Bell Media contributed revenue CAD 559 million, up 0.9 percent from a year ago as higher carriage rates under new contracts helped offset a soft ad market. Bell Media EBITDA rose 23.6 percent to CAD 152 million, supported by lower costs.
BCE slightly adjusted its full-year outlook and now expects slightly higher adjusted EPS of CAD 3.15-3.20. EBITDA growth will be at the high end of the 2-4 percent forecast growth range, while revenues will be at the low end of the 3-5 percent growth guidance. With capex for the fibre roll-out expected to accelerate in H2, Bell expects total capex at 16 percent of revenues this year. Free cash flow should still reach CAD 2.35-2.50 billion in 2012, and Bell announced an increase in its annual dividend of 10 cents to CAD 2.27 per share.
