U.S. Cellular’s second quarter results were greeted positively by the market as the company delivered revenue and profit ahead of Wall Street’s expectations, despite a modest year-on-year sales decline. Leadership attributed the outperformance to disciplined execution during a period of significant transformation, with CEO Walter Carlson highlighting the successful close of the T-Mobile transaction and the resulting shift toward a focused fiber and tower infrastructure strategy. CFO Vicki Villacrez emphasized ongoing capital allocation efforts to strengthen the company’s financial position and fund growth initiatives in core operating segments.

Is now the time to buy USM? Find out in our full research report (it’s free).

While we enjoy listening to the management's commentary, our favorite part of earnings calls are the analyst questions. Those are unscripted and can often highlight topics that management teams would rather avoid or topics where the answer is complicated. Here is what has caught our attention.

Our Top 5 Analyst Questions From U.S. Cellular’s Q2 Earnings Call

• Richard Hamilton Prentiss (Raymond James) pressed for details on accelerating fiber expansion and market penetration. CFO Kristina Bothfeld stressed the company is sizing edge-out opportunities and expects to provide more detail in coming quarters, emphasizing aggressive pre-sales strategies.
• Sebastiano Carmine Petti (JPMorgan) asked about fiber broadband net additions and competitive dynamics. Bothfeld reiterated the expectation for year-over-year net add improvement, citing targeted expansion markets and a fully staffed door-to-door sales team to drive growth.
• Vikash Harlalka (New Street Research) queried the nationwide rollout of the TDS Mobile MVNO and pricing strategies. Bothfeld confirmed a full footprint launch and described a market-based pricing approach with step-ups after two years, noting ongoing tests for optimization.
• Sergey Dluzhevskiy (Gabelli) inquired about the tower business growth strategy and operational improvements. Interim CEO Doug Chambers highlighted bringing sales in-house, strong master license agreements, and favorable competitive positioning as key growth drivers.
• Sergey Dluzhevskiy (Gabelli) also asked about synergies between fiber and tower businesses under the holding company structure. CEO Walter Carlson acknowledged differences in business models but emphasized combined financial strength and future value creation opportunities.

Catalysts in Upcoming Quarters

In the coming quarters, the StockStory team will be watching (1) successful execution of the T-Mobile master license agreement and the resulting ramp in tower colocation activity; (2) progress on closing the AT&T and Verizon spectrum sales and the timing of related special dividends; and (3) accelerated fiber address expansion, particularly in rural and edge-out markets. Updates on capital allocation and potential M&A initiatives will also be important markers of execution.

U.S. Cellular currently trades at $77.01, up from $74.33 just before the earnings. In the wake of this quarter, is it a buy or sell? The answer lies in our full research report (it’s free).

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