BCE Posts Revenue Growth Amid Fiber Expansion and AI Infrastructure Push
Canada's telecom incumbent delivered 1.5% revenue growth in Q2 while advancing AI data centers and U.S. fiber buildout, as wireless churn hit three-year low.
Financial Performance
BCE Inc. reported consolidated revenue growth of 1.5% in the second quarter, reaching adjusted EBITDA of over $1 billion in the period, according to CEO Mirko Bibic on the company's August 6 earnings call. Adjusted EBITDA increased 1% year-over-year, while the margin remained essentially stable at 43.8% (earnings call, 2026-08-06).
The Montreal-based telecom operator generated "more than $1 billion of free cash flow in the quarter" and reduced its net debt leverage ratio to approximately 3.7x (earnings call, 2026-08-06). Adjusted earnings per share rose $0.02 to $0.65, supported by higher EBITDA and the absence of certain foreign exchange hedge losses recorded in the prior-year period.
Capital expenditures increased $317 million year-over-year, driven primarily by Ziply Fiber's U.S. buildout and Bell AI Fabric investments. CFO Curtis Millen noted that "the majority of expected 2026 Saskatchewan AI data center CapEx of approximately $1.3 billion is to be incurred in the second half of the year" (earnings call, 2026-08-06).
Wireless and Broadband Trends
BCE's wireless segment showed signs of stabilization, with postpaid churn improving 4 basis points year-over-year to 1.02%, "the lowest quarterly level in 3 years" (earnings call, 2026-08-06). The company added 41,594 postpaid mobile phone subscribers, reflecting what Bibic characterized as a "focus on higher-value customers, lower handset discounting and a healthier recurring revenue mix" (earnings call, 2026-08-06).
Average revenue per user remained relatively stable, down approximately 0.2% without the impact of G7 Summit-related revenue from the prior year. Importantly, monthly recurring charges component of ARPU increased 0.7%, supported by improved transaction rates.
Fiber broadband continued as a growth driver, with BCE adding more than 45,000 residential fiber-to-the-home Internet subscribers in Canada. Including the newly acquired Ziply Fiber operations, total residential fiber net additions reached nearly 55,000, contributing to 14.2% Internet revenue growth (earnings call, 2026-08-06).
AI and Media Initiatives
BCE advanced its Bell AI Fabric infrastructure during the quarter, with the Saskatchewan 300-megawatt facility progressing through construction milestones. "Piling has been completed and structural steel work is underway," Bibic said, with first-phase operations "expected in the first half of 2027" (earnings call, 2026-08-06). The company now has approximately 335 megawatts of contracted capacity and received its "first tenant payment on the Saskatchewan facility in the quarter" (earnings call, 2026-08-06).
Demand for AI-powered enterprise solutions remained strong, with combined revenue from Atteko and Bell Cyber up 29% year-over-year (earnings call, 2026-08-06).
Bell Media delivered robust performance, with revenue growth of 8.9% and adjusted EBITDA growth of 3.8%. Crave streaming subscribers surpassed 5 million, growing 23% year-over-year to 5.1 million, while direct-to-consumer streaming subscribers grew 49% (earnings call, 2026-08-06). FIFA World Cup coverage reached 30.5 million Canadians, with the tournament final becoming "the most watched World Cup match ever in Canada with an average audience of 6.4 million viewers" (earnings call, 2026-08-06).
This article was generated by MarginX from the earnings call on 2026-08-06. It is not investment advice.