T-Mobile (TMUS.US) Q2 Earnings Mixed: Net Account Additions Down 13% Year-on-Year but Still Beat Expectations

Zhitong Finance APP has learned that T-Mobile US (TMUS.US) released its Q2 earnings report before the US market opened on Thursday. The company continues to solidify its market foundations with its mature customer loyalty program; it exceeded expectations in net new wireless account additions and key profitability metrics, although overall sales did not meet analyst forecasts. Following the release, T-Mobile shares fell nearly 6%.

Data shows that T-Mobile’s Q2 revenue grew nearly 8% year-over-year to $22.8 billion, missing market expectations of $22.9 billion. Total service revenue (which typically refers to connectivity business revenue excluding device sales such as mobile phones) rose 9% year-over-year to $19 billion.

Earnings per share were $2.99, a 5% increase year-over-year and higher than the market expectation of $2.59. Adjusted EBITDA increased 12% year-over-year to $9.54 billion, slightly above market forecasts.

In the three months ended June 30, net new account additions were 277,000, down 13% year-over-year but still above the market expectation of 264,300.

Intense Competition in the US Telecom Industry: T-Mobile Changes User Metrics and Optimizes Plan Structure to Stabilize Customer Base

T-Mobile will no longer report traditional new wireless customer numbers (i.e., net additions of postpaid phone subscribers), but will instead use net new account additions as its core growth metric. This strategic adjustment, led by new CEO Srini Gopalan, will be implemented starting with the Q1 2026 earnings report. CFO Peter Osvaldik explained that over 90% of postpaid accounts actually include more than one line, so simply increasing the number of lines does not truly reflect value creation; the company places more importance on trends where customers bring their entire business relationship to T-Mobile.

Notably, T-Mobile has continued to attract customers through its decade-long “T-Mobile Tuesdays” loyalty program, offering a wide array of deals and rewards. Gopalan stated on Thursday that the solid relationship between T-Mobile and its customers is a key driver for the company’s “substantial progress” toward achieving short- and long-term financial goals.

“As our unmatched value proposition continues to win customer recognition, and as we keep investing in our network and technology, we see tremendous growth opportunities across wireless, broadband, and new business areas,” he said.

Amid the increasingly fierce competition in the mobile user market, all three major US telecom operators have been rolling out bundled home internet and wireless services to provide one-stop connectivity solutions. T-Mobile recently discontinued some older plans, resulting in slight fee increases for some consumers, and AT&T (T.US) has taken similar steps.

Raised Full-Year Cash Flow Guidance While Net Account Addition Forecasts Remain Unchanged

T-Mobile has raised its cash flow guidance for 2026, while reaffirming its forecasts for net new account additions and other metrics. The company now expects full-year adjusted free cash flow (including net expenditures related to the UScellular merger) to be between $18.4 billion and $18.8 billion, up from the previously expected $18.1 billion to $18.7 billion. The company still projects full-year net new account additions to be between 950,000 and 1.05 million.

T-Mobile is the second of the three major US wireless carriers to announce quarterly results. On Wednesday, AT&T reported metrics that mostly exceeded expectations, including monthly mobile subscriber additions and adjusted EPS. Verizon (VZ.US) will announce its Q2 results on Friday, July 24.

As of press time before the US market opened on Thursday, T-Mobile shares were down 5.58%, AT&T was up more than 1%, and Verizon was down 0.2%.