Quebecor Inc. says its purchase of Freedom Mobile drove a big boost in earnings last quarter as the company added more than 1.8 million customers through the acquisition.
Quebecor said revenues in its second quarter jumped 25 per cent to $1.40 billion from $1.12 billion the year before. On an adjusted basis, income from continuing operations rose to 79 cents per share last quarter compared to 68 cents per share a year prior, beating analyst expectations of 72 cents per share.
The vast majority of the company's new subscribers through Freedom are mobile phone customers, along with 20,000 subscriptions to Internet service. "The acquisition of Freedom in April 2023 has positioned Quebecor as Canada’s fourth national wireless provider. Our mobile network now reaches nearly 70 per cent of Canada’s population and we will be able to further expand our coverage by functioning as a mobile virtual network operator," he said in a press release.