BCE Inc.

Q2 consolidated revenue increased 1.5% year over year; adjusted EBITDA grew 1%; adjusted EPS was $0.65, up $0.02; adjusted EBITDA margin was essentially stable at 43.8%. Free cash flow was over $1 billion, and net debt leverage was approximately 3.7x, down about 0.1x since Q4. On the operating side, BCE added 41,594 postpaid mobile phone net adds, 45,271 residential FTTH Internet net adds in Canada, and Bell Media revenue grew 8.9% with adjusted EBITDA up 3.8%. Management reconfirmed all 2026 financial guidance targets and said it remains on track to reach 3.5x net debt leverage by the end of 2027; it also reiterated that the majority of expected 2026 Saskatchewan AI data center CapEx of approximately $1.3 billion will be incurred in the second half of the year.

Mirko Bibic framed the quarter as evidence that BCE is executing on the Investor Day strategy: disciplined core telecom execution, investment in higher-growth opportunities, and a path to sustainable free cash flow growth. He emphasized better wireless pricing, lower churn, continued fiber wins, and Bell Media monetization as proof the strategy is working. On AI Fabric, he repeatedly stressed that BCE is staying on plan, building real assets, and monetizing structurally advantaged opportunities rather than chasing broad-based capex expansion.

Curtis Millen highlighted the quarter’s financial profile: revenue up 1.5%, adjusted EBITDA up 1%, adjusted EPS at $0.65, margin at 43.8%, and free cash flow above $1 billion. He said CapEx was up $317 million year over year due to Ziply Fiber and Bell AI Fabric, while Canadian telco CapEx declined year over year. He also noted BCE ended Q2 with $4.6 billion of total available liquidity, received just under $100 million of Saskatchewan tenant prepayments in the quarter as part of about $400 million in setup fees and prepayments, and remains on track for a 3.5x leverage target by end-2027.

Analysts pressed on why Saskatchewan CapEx is now expected to ramp more in Q3/Q4; management said the construction timeline has not changed and the shift is simply about when cash is spent, not when equipment is ordered or work is done. On Ziply, management said build activity is accelerating, with permits, approvals, contractor capacity and fiber supply all progressing, and that revenue should ultimately flow from building and loading fiber, though there are still legacy declines and a small-base wholesale impact. On wireless, management said the quarter’s net adds included an enterprise/government contract, but excluding it results are still in line with peers; they also said they are prioritizing profitability over hardware discounting and are not giving a precise prediction for when ARPU turns flattish.