BCE Inc. said Thursday that its profits slipped 2.5% in the second quarter, but the results from Canada’s largest telecom company still beat expectations from analysts.
The Montreal-based telecommunications company posted earnings of $590 million, or 76 cents per share. That compares with $605 million or 80 cents in the same period last year.
On an adjusted basis, earnings rose 10.3% to 86 cents per share, beating analyst expectations of 81 cents per share, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters.
Operating revenues increased 11.6% to $4.96 billion, from $4.44 billion a year earlier, as higher revenues in its Bell division were partially offset by lower results at Bell Aliant.
BCE said it’s wireless operating revenues increased 6.1% to $1.28 billion, as it added 94,000 net wireless subscribers.
Earlier this year, BCE was given regulatory approval to purchase the rest of the CTV assets that it didn’t already own.
The company said it plans to use the content to put across wireless media platforms such as smartphones, personal computers and computer tablets.
BCE also has been at the centre of a debate over how much independent internet providers should pay BCE and other major providers for the use of their networks.
The company recently told a CRTC hearing on the matter that independent Internet providers are significant contributors to network congestion and the price they pay to big telecom companies should reflect usage.
