Episode summary
Charter Shares Fall on Internet Customer Losses, Profit Miss | Bloomberg Intelligence
Bloomberg Intelligence
· · Hosts: Lisa Mateo, Isabelle Lee · Guests: Geetha Ranganathan, Kunjan Sobhani, Poonam Goyal, Brett Gibbs
Summary
Charter’s shares fell after the company lost 111,000 residential high-speed internet customers in the quarter, underscoring the pressure from wireless carriers such as AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. The analyst said those companies are pushing cheap 5G home internet, often around $50 a month, and that cable operators are losing subscribers at an accelerating pace. Charter’s mobile bundle and the company’s new tax savings may help at the margin, but the analyst said neither is enough to change the stock’s near-term trajectory.
The FCC’s approval of Paramount Global’s merger with Skydance Media showed how regulatory approval can hinge on concessions. The analyst said the deal was helped by commitments tied to CBS News, diversity practices and discussions with the FCC and the Trump administration, suggesting future media mergers could get done if companies are willing to work with regulators and the administration.
Intel’s earnings left investors focused on whether the new CEO is prioritizing cost cuts over rebuilding competitiveness. The analyst said Intel is taking practical steps, including cutting costs and delaying factory projects, but that the long-promised foundry inflection is slipping from 18A to 14A. Puma also drew concern after slashing its outlook on weak demand, tariffs and forex pressure, while Phillips 66 posted a strong refining quarter as diesel demand stayed tight and management’s operational plan gained some support.
Key takeaways
- The analyst said Charter is losing internet subscribers as telecoms push cheap 5G home broadband into cable’s core market.
- Charter’s $35 billion Cox deal and tax savings may help, but the analyst said they do not solve the immediate subscriber-loss problem.
- The analyst said the Paramount-Skydance approval suggests media M&A can get done if companies satisfy the FCC and the administration.
- Intel’s turnaround is being judged on practical execution, but the analyst said the foundry payoff has been pushed farther out to 14A.
- Puma’s outlook cut reflected forex pressure, tariffs and wholesale weakness, with the analyst calling 2025 a reset year and 2026 a transition year.
- Phillips 66 had a strong refining quarter, with the analyst citing 98% utilization and tight diesel markets as the main supports.
Notable quotes
“they are losing subscribers, and they're losing subscribers at an accelerating pace”
“as long as you know you're willing to work with the FCC um and the administration I think a lot of the media deals can potentially get done”
“from what we heard last night it seems that Gold Post is sort of moving farther out now to 14A”
How the episode opens
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One of those stocks under pressure is actually Charter. Uh oh, no. Oh, we're not going into that.
Yes. Are we going? Oh, we both are.
Okay. So, Githa, there we go. We are going to Ga.
Uh, Githa Rangan. She's Bloomberg intelligence analyst on the latest in the media space. So, Gita, we were talking about charter.
So, sharers really taking a hit. Lost more internet subscribers. If you can explain to us, is it just a lot of pressure from these mobile phone companies?
Is that what it is? It it is exactly that. So, remember uh you know, Charter controls about 28% of the fixed broadband market.
They have roughly 29 million subscribers. But what has happened over the past few years is uh you know the telecoms. So talk think about you know AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, they've gotten really aggressive.
So of course we know that they are uh the top wireless providers but where they're competing now with the cable operators is in fixed broadband. So your home internet connection for instance, right? Uh so what they're doing is uh they're offering something called 5G home internet which is really cheap.
It's just very easy to hook up. It costs about $50 a month. Uh and it's much cheaper than cable.
Uh and so people are really saying, you know what, this is great. Uh I don't have to deal with, you know, uh the endless uh heartache that that everybody usually has with their cable company, plus it's cheaper.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- internet customer losses
- media mergers
- semiconductor earnings
- e-commerce retail outlook
- refining and diesel demand
Companies and tickers mentioned
- CHTR
- PARA
- PAR
- INTC
- AMZN
- PSX
- Charter Communications
- Paramount Global
- Skydance Media
- Intel
- Puma
- Amazon
- Phillips 66
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Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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