T-Mobile and UScellular are currently waiting for approval from the FCC and the DOJ for their acquisition deal. Under this arrangement, T-Mobile will acquire UScellular’s wireless operations, which includes customers, retail stores, and 30% of its wireless spectrum. The financial terms stipulate that T-Mobile will assume $4.4 billion in obligations, including $2 billion in UScellular debt. UScellular, the fifth-largest wireless provider in the US, serves many underserved rural markets.
Recently, UScellular reported its financial performance for the first quarter, revealing a loss of 39,000 net postpaid phone subscribers. This decline left the company with a total of 3,946,000 postpaid customers. Postpaid subscribers are particularly valuable as they tend to have greater loyalty, higher average revenue per user, and present opportunities for upselling. In addition to subscriber losses, UScellular’s revenue for the quarter stood at $891 million, which is a decrease of $59 million, or 6.2%, from the previous year.
The service revenue also dropped from $754 million in Q1 2024 to $741 million in Q1 2025. However, net income remained stable at $18 million, or 21 cents per share, compared to the same period last year. While UScellular typically provides a forecast during earnings reports, it refrained from doing so this time due to the pending acquisition deal with T-Mobile. In recent communications, T-Mobile and UScellular urged the FCC to expedite the approval process for spectrum transfers, while a group including the Rural Wireless Association filed a request for a more measured review.
Following the financial report, UScellular’s shares fell by 8.4%, while T-Mobile’s shares saw an increase.