(Bloomberg) — Deutsche Telekom AG, Europe’s largest telecommunications operator, increased its profitability in the third quarter thanks to cost discipline and strong performance in the United States and Germany.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization after leases rose 6.4% from a year earlier to 11.1 billion euros ($11.7 billion) in the third quarter, the company said on Thursday. carrier in a press release. Analysts expected 11.05 billion euros, according to the average of estimates established by Bloomberg.

The German operator is outperforming its peers in Europe, largely thanks to its majority stake in U.S. operator T-Mobile US Inc., which previously reported strong subscriber growth for the quarter and raised its outlook of profits for 2024. This participation, along with cost-cutting measures, has allowed the company to improve its cash flow, increase its dividend and invest in technologies such as artificial intelligence. Service revenue in the United States increased by 4.2% to €15.2 billion.

In Germany, the company invested heavily in fiber optic networks and customer service, including a loyalty program for residential customers that helped reduce churn. Service revenue in the country increased by 2.1% to €5.65 billion for the quarter.

“The growth momentum continues unabated on both sides of the Atlantic,” said Christian Illek, chief financial officer of Deutsche Telekom. “At the same time, we managed to bring our leverage ratio below our target value. »

Organic net revenue for the quarter increased by 3.6% to €28.5 billion compared to the same quarter last year.

Deutsche Telekom slightly raised its adjusted Ebitdaal outlook for 2024 to 43 billion euros, from 42.9 billion euros. It expects that same figure to grow 4% to 6% annually through 2027, CEO Tim Höttges told investors at its capital markets day last month. It also proposes a share buyback program of up to 2 billion euros in 2025 and a record dividend of 90 euro cents per share next year for the current financial year.

Deutsche Telekom shares closed on Wednesday at 27.85 euros. They are up 28% so far this year.

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