Quebecor Q1 revenues soar following Freedom takeover

Quebecor Inc. reported a robust increase in revenues and profits for the first quarter of 2024, driven largely by its acquisition of Freedom Mobile last year. The telecom company discussed its financial results during a conference call on Thursday. For the three months ending March 31, the Montreal-based company saw a 22.2 per cent hike in overall revenues, reaching $1.36 billion compared to last year’s $1.12 billion over the same period. Profits grew by 47.6 per cent to $167.6 million, up from $113.5 million last year. Adjusted EBITDA was $559.5 million, a 26.4 per cent increase from last year’s $442.8 million. “One year after the successful acquisition, it is with immense pride that we mark this milestone in the history of Quebecor, which has established itself as Canada's fourth major national wireless carrier,” said CEO Pierre Karl Péladeau. The merger has “transformed” the landscape of Canadian telecommunications, he touted, pointing to declines in the wireless component of Statistic Canada’s Consumer Price Index. He also expressed pride in the small number of complaints that Quebecor’s brands received compared to other big players in the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services’ (CCTS) most recent mid-year report. Higher complaints among competitors “clearly demonstrate the failure of tactics to acquire customers with low prices in the short term, but ultimately frustrating them with deals only available to new customers, unfair price increases, surprises, and confusing terms and conditions leading to ,” stated Péladeau. Quebecor’s telecom segment takes the credit for the company’s growth, with revenues that jumped 27.5 per cent to $1.18 billion from $925 million last year. The media segment faced a slight downturn, with revenues decreasing by 1.2 per cent to $168.8 million, down from last year’s $170.8 million. The sports and entertainment sector experienced a revenue decline of 3.7 per cent, totaling $46.7 million compared to $48.5 million last year. Quebecor also reported an increase in net revenue-generating units, with 17,400 new connections over Q1, a 0.2 per cent increase from 2023. This was primarily fueled by a 1.6 per cent customer growth in mobile telephony services, which saw 60,200 connections, including 60,200 connections (1.6%) to the mobile telephony service. Péladeau noted the company’s low-cost mobile plans drove growth in the company’s customer base, reporting 264,100 new lines added over the past 12 months, an increase of 15.2 per cent. Looking ahead, Quebecor remains focused on national expansion, including further enhancing wireless coverage in Quebec’s remote areas. This involves a strategic partnership with the provincial government to install at least 37 new cell towers in regions such as Abitibi-Témiscamingue and the Laurentians. – Reporting by Phalen Tynes-MacDonald at pcreed@thewirereport.ca

Quebecor Q1 revenues soar following Freedom takeover

Broadcast | May 9, 2024

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Quebecor Q1 revenues soar following Freedom takeover

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