(Reuters) – Wireless carrier T-Mobile US Inc posted fourth-quarter revenue below Wall Street estimates on Wednesday, as competition heats up with rivals looking to add subscribers through more attractive promotional offers.
The company added thousands of wireless subscribers over the last few years, thanks to hefty discounts on smartphones, industry-low plan prices and an edge in 5G. But a slowdown in wireless growth and bigger promotions by rivals amid rising costs are hurting T-Mobile now.
The company said total revenue fell 2.5% to $20.27 billion in the quarter ended December, below Wall Street’s estimate of $20.6 billion, according to Refinitiv data. It added 927,000 monthly bill-paying phone subscribers in the quarter.
T-Mobile’s net income rose to $1.48 billion, or $1.18 per share, from $422 million, or 34 cents per share, a year earlier.
In January, the company said it was investigating a data breach that may have exposed 37 million postpaid and prepaid accounts, and it may incur significant costs related to the incident.
T-Mobile expects to add between 5 million and 5.5 million net monthly-bill paying subscribers in 2023, compared with the 6.4 million additions it reported in 2022.
(Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
