T-Mobile CEO Optimistic Sprint Buy Will Close First Half of 2019; Growth Continues

T-Mobile CEO John Legere said on an earnings call Tuesday he remains optimistic the company will get regulatory approval to buy Sprint. “We have a lot of respect for the regulatory process, which is not yet finished,” Legere said. “We have completed a number of major milestones and remain optimistic and confident that once the facts are reviewed by regulators they will recognize the significant pro-competitive and pro-consumer benefits.” Legere noted the formal comment period at the FCC closes Wednesday and that more than half the state public commissions reviewing the deal have signed off. “We’re making progress,” he said. “We continue to expect this merger to close in the first half of 2019.” T-Mobile continues to grow more quickly than its competitors, adding a net 774,000 branded postpaid phone customers in Q3 with 1.6 million total net additions. The carrier also had record adjusted earnings of $3.2 billion, 15 percent above the year-ago quarter, and revenue of $8.1 billion, an increase of 8.2 percent. T-Mobile had 2.6 times as many net adds as Verizon. Legere said T-Mobile is offering 21 devices that use 600 MHz spectrum it bought in the TV incentive auction and the equipment being installed on its towers is upgradable to 5G with a software update. The company said 600 MHz is available in more than 1,500 cities and towns in 37 states and Puerto Rico. Wells Fargo’s Jennifer Fritzsche sees a 70 percent chance the deal will be approved, up from 60 percent, she wrote investors. “Our recent DC checks make us more confident that the … merger will be approved,” she said. “While the DoJ is admittedly a walled garden, most contacts we spoke [to] have not heard chatter coming out of the agency which would suggest there exist insurmountable barriers in completing this marriage.” She expects regulators to demand spectrum divestitures. Sprint reports quarterly earnings Wednesday.