Telus Corporation (TSX: T)(NYSE: TU) is one of the top telecommunications companies in the country, and 2017 will bring much of the same success that 2016 had in store.
The stock grew 11.8% last year, and it has started the new year positively, growing slightly as it put itself in a position to succeed moving forward. Telus is one of several companies looking to the future by testing the cutting-edge data technology for mobile devices known as 5G which will soon dominate the telecommunications industry.
Customers will not be happy to hear that the company is slashing the monthly savings rate for home services bundles by $2-3 per product as of March 1 due to increased costs of the product’s infrastructure. However, plenty of good will come from such a sacrifice: its networks and services will be better than ever as their speed and reliability will be improved.
Telus is shifting its attention towards home services, which currently exist in Alberta and British Columbia. The company injected $370 million into a Vancouver infrastructure, $275 million in Edmonton, and $130 million in Calgary about eight months ago. Additionally, it was the first telecommunications provider to roll out 4K TV in western Canada this past July.
Another move that spells success in the future for the company was improving Moto Z devices by updating its Android operating system to Nougat about three weeks ago. Improved features of the operating system include multi-window support, bundled notifications, and compatibility with virtual-reality platform Daydream.
Telus is a partner company of HTML500, which is an event where you can learn how to code for free. This creation will begin in Toronto on February 18 before reaching Vancouver, Montreal, Calgary, Victoria, Saskatoon, and three other cities. The move proves the company’s commitment towards technological advancement as 2,500 people of all ages will participate. More than 50% of these will be women.
The company recently added an update to its servers that allows smartphone owners to make phone calls using Wi-Fi if connected. This marks a nice alternative to using data that many top companies in North America are using. Naturally, texting and receiving calls and multimedia messages can still be used through Wi-Fi.
Philanthropy has also become a part of Telus’s philosophy as the company recently donated $5 million to Child Health BC Initiative. This will ensure that children that are part of BC Children’s Hospital will have expanded access to health tech throughout the province. The company also donated $5,000 to create a recreation trail between Vernon and Kelowna in BC.
Investors are set to cash in on T stock as the company has an impressive dividend yield of 4.4% and a market capitalization of $25.86 billion to go along with a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.59. The stock has a consensus price target of $45.50.
It was a good end to 2016 and it’s been a good beginning to 2017 for Telus, which continues to be as relevant as ever. With the moves to advance its TV, internet, and smartphone services, the company has offerings that plenty of customers are set to enjoy, despite higher prices for its services.
