Well positioned to buy Shaw’s wireless arm

QUEBECOR INC.

The Canadian telecommunications saga continues.

Rogers Communications Inc. faces the prospect of a court battle over the $26-billion deal to buy Shaw Communications Inc. after the federal Competition Bureau said it wants to block the merger. If Rogers is compelled to divest Shaw’s Freedom Mobile, Quebecor says that could give it another opportunity to expand outside of its home province.

On May 12, Quebecor Inc. reported it’s first-quarter profit, which performed better than the same time last year. Its net income attributable to shareholders totalled $121.4 million, or 51 cents per share, compared with a profit of $121.3 million, or 49 cents per share, year over year. Revenue for the quarter in 2022 totalled $1.088 billion, down from $1.091 billion in the first three months of 2021. Revenue decreased in telecommunications by $10.6 million, but increased in media by $7 million.

Quebecor has acquired spectrum licences outside Quebec and is considering taking advantage of new regulatory rules that will allow it to lease access to the national carriers’ networks. CEO Pierre Karl Péladeau said he was pleased to see the Competition Bureau oppose the Rogers deal this week and said it could open up another alternative to expand its wireless business. “It would be good for Quebecor because they’re planning on building out a wireless network either way,” said Matthew Dolgin, equity analyst at Morningstar. Quebecor would acquire strong assets becoming the fourth main competitor in the country, after Rogers, Bell, and Telus.