Telecom Stock Roundup: Verizon 5G Ready To Launch, T-Mobile-Ericsson Deal And More

Telecom stocks have trended upward the past five trading session, driven by healthy job growth data and optimism from a U.S. proposal to restart talks with China in the near future to iron out a new trade agreement.

Regarding company-specific news, strategic deals, technological collaborations and deployment of 5G technology took the center stage over the past five trading days.

The Week's Most Important Stories

1.    Verizon Communications Inc. VZ has announced its plans to launch the world's first commercial 5G broadband Internet service on October 1, 2018. This is the company's giant leap forward in gaining a competitive advantage against rivals.

Dubbed Verizon 5G Home, the service will be initially available in select regions in Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles and Sacramento. Existing Verizon customers in these places will be able to subscribe to the service for $50 a month for the 5G Internet and TV service after a three-month free trial. Other customers will be required to pay $70 a month for the service after the introductory free trial period of three months.

2.    ARRIS International plc ARRS announced that two of its products will power the next-generation satellite distribution network of HBO Latin America. This will facilitate the smooth transfer of video content across the ARRIS's cable network in the region.

These include the ARRIS DSR-7412 transcoder, which enables transcoding to make the digital file viewable on different playback devices, and DSR-4470 receiver decoder that helps to capture and convert digital data transmitted from a radio-frequency signal. ARRIS is transforming the entertainment experience through a holistic approach to content delivery, leveraging its expertise in cloud, network and home, to help providers anticipate demand for more personalized, relevant and mobile experiences.

3.    AT&T Inc. T announced that as part of its 5G deployment in a dozen cities in 2018, it will launch mobile 5G service in certain areas of five cities — Houston, Jacksonville, Louisville, New Orleans and San Antonio — this year. These add to its previously announced seven cities of Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas, Indianapolis, Oklahoma City, Raleigh and Waco.

The telecom giant added that it is planning to bring mobile 5G service in parts of Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Nashville, Orlando, San Diego, San Francisco and San Jose in early 2019 to take the tally to 19 cities and will expand thereafter.

4.    Finisar Corporation FNSR reported robust first-quarter fiscal 2019 results (ended Jul 29, 2018), wherein both the top and bottom lines beat the respective Zacks Consensus Estimate. Excluding non-recurring items, non-GAAP net income declined to $21.3 million or 18 cents per share from $45.8 million or 40 cents per share in the prior-year quarter. Quarterly overall revenues decreased 7.2% year over year to $317.3 million primarily owing to lower datacom revenues.

5.    Ericsson ERIC announced that it has inked a $3.5 billion multi-year deal with T-Mobile US Inc TMUS to support the latter's nationwide 5G network deployment. Per the agreement, the Swedish high-end equipment manufacturer will provide the U.S. mobile carrier with the latest 5G New Radio hardware and software, compliant with 3rd Generation Partnership Project standards.

Notably, T-Mobile's installed base of Ericsson Radio System radios will be able to run 5G NR technology with simple remote software installation. The agreement entails Ericsson's digital services solutions including dynamic orchestration, business support systems and Ericsson Cloud Core. As a result, this will help T-Mobile to bring innovative and groundbreaking 5G experiences to customers at a rapid pace.

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