Telus (TU) Tops Q3 EPS by 3c

Telus (NYSE: TU) reported Q3 EPS of $0.66, $0.03 better than the analyst estimate of $0.63. Revenue for the quarter came in at $3.2 million versus the consensus estimate of $3.16 million.

"Our company continued to deliver solid financial and operational results in both our wireline and wireless businesses," said Darren Entwistle, President and CEO. "The TELUS team's unwavering focus on our number one priority to put customers first once again earned us the leadership position with respect to lifetime revenue per customer and an unmatched ninth consecutive quarter of customer loyalty as reflected by wireless monthly postpaid churn below one per cent. Moreover, we distinguished ourselves as one of the only telecom companies globally to report wireline subscriber, revenue and EBITDA growth."

Darren added, "As we finish the year and look towards 2016, we will continue to focus on the company's long-term and disciplined strategy of investing in our wireless and wireline data growth engines, and earning the privilege of building customer loyalty through constantly improving client service excellence. The $4.5 billion to be spent in capital expenditures and spectrum in 2015 are the most significant annual investments in our company's history, helping progress TELUS' position as the industry leader in customer service, operational performance and financial results, including shareholder friendly initiatives. While TELUS is one of the largest and most important infrastructure investors in Canada and has established a track record for leveraging these capital decisions, the generational investments we make also come with parallel investments in process and efficiency initiatives. We are increasing our efficiency initiatives by an additional $125 million in the fourth quarter, which will include a net reduction of approximately 1,500 full-time positions, a notable number of which are voluntary departures and early retirements. These are very difficult decisions to make but a necessary element of aligning our organization with the growth, customer service and capital allocation activities we are implementing."

John Gossling, TELUS Executive Vice-President and CFO said, "I am pleased that the TELUS team has maintained strong performance in key financial and operating metrics, while navigating a period of significant investment and heightened consumer activity. Our track record is strong for leveraging the investments we make in our customers, new technology and efficiency enhancements, and we anticipate the additional cost efficiency initiatives to provide annual recurring savings of between $100 million to $125 million, including some savings commencing in the fourth quarter of 2015."

John added, "Through the consistency of our performance and the quality of our asset mix, TELUS also continued to reward our valued shareholders in the third quarter with our multi-year share purchase and dividend growth programs. We returned an additional $363 million to shareholders in dividends paid and share purchases, and year-to-date, we have returned $1.4 billion. Today, we also announced our tenth double digit dividend increase since 2011 under our multi-year dividend growth program. TELUS has now returned $12.2 billion or more than $20 per share to shareholders over the past decade."

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Telus (TU) click here.

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