Opinions David Baskin
Rogers Communications (B)RCI.B.TOCOMMENTMay 12, 2015
David BaskinStock price when the opinion was issued
As of Jul 24, 2026. Market Open.
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Thinks dividend is safe, as the payout ratio is lower than some other telcos. Plus, the yield is lower than peers. Telco sector is not in favour, but RCI.B has outperformed.
Riskiest of the telcos right now. Higher debt. When you "flip" these sports assets (high valuation, but not cashflow positive), there's valuation risk. Lots of noise.
They have business in Ontario and Quebec, and a large cable business in some US states, but that is facing strong competition from fixed-wireless, fibre providers and satellite companies like Starlink. He's bearish all Canadian telcos, which are impacted by weak immigration and wireless competition is aggressive as the CRTC clamps down on fees and contracts. For Rogers, the business is mature and demands a lot of capex and carries $40B of debt.
Likes it for buying Freedom Mobile, the low-cost mobile carrier. In contrast, Rogers has limited growth. QBR is taking market share from Rogers. Because of a regulation change, Freedom users now have far better coverage outside their core areas across Canada. He prefers Quebecor because of Freedom.
No growth in this industry. Less immigration = less growth. That overhang has hurt the entire space. He owns this name for clients who want income. Undervalued. Low dividend payout. Potential catalysts as they monetize sports assets. Better potential total return.
Chris BlumasHe was probably feeling defensive last year with these picks, same as he is now. Sports asset value has increased dramatically, and it'll be able to monetize that. Huge positive announced last quarter that capex would be cut dramatically, which will increase FCF.
John Zechner
It's outperformed BCE and Telus which she owns for the dividend (Telus has the most turnaround potential). The street expects Rogers to spin off their sports division. You can't go wrong with any telcos, which aren't getting any love now. They are undercutting each other are prices. She likes it for defence and yields, though is not high-growth
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With possible rising interest rates, are you better off in a REIT or a telco like Rogers (RCI.B-T)? People have always claimed that REITs are going to go down if interest rates go up. That was certainly the experience we had in 2013 during the temper tantrum over the tapering of the Fed bond buying program. He has always contended that higher interest rates are at worst a 2 edged sword for REITs because they imply a higher inflation which means the ability to raise rents. Some of the REITs have dropped the amount of debt they are holding, so the impact of higher interest rates would not necessarily be so bad. Also, yields are less attractive when bond yields go up, but if you see the 5%-7% yields on REITs, bond yields are still less attractive. However, he feels telecoms are higher growth with a higher ability to raise their dividends and will probably do better in a higher interest rate environment.