TELEPHONE & DATA SYSTEMS INC /DE/
For the period ended Sep 30, 2026. Filed Nov 6, 2026.
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A company's report for each of its first three quarters. The financial statements are not audited. It shows how the business has moved since the last annual report, and what management says changed.
Sep 30, 2026 · Filed Nov 6, 2026
Extracted filing text, with the paragraph anchors used by the comparison.
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TDS Telecom Operations
Business Overview
TDS Telecom owns, operates and invests in high-quality networks, services and products in a mix of small to mid-sized urban, suburban and rural communities throughout the United States. TDS Telecom is a wholly-owned subsidiary of TDS and provides a wide range of broadband, video, voice and wireless communications services to residential, commercial and wholesale customers. TDS Telecom seeks to deliver outstanding customer service.
OPERATIONS
Serves 1.1 million connections in 30 states
Employs approximately 3,900 associates
Operational Overview — TDS Telecom
Total Service Address Mix
As of September 30,
TDS Telecom increased its service addresses 8% from a year ago to 2.0 million as of September 30, 2026 through footprint expansion and acquisition. TDS Telecom serves 56% of incumbent service addresses with fiber.
TDS Telecom offers 1Gig+ service to 82% of its total footprint as of September 30, 2026, compared to 76% a year ago.
| As of or for the Quarter Ended September 30, · 2026 · 2025 · 2026 vs. 2025 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential connections | |||||
| Broadband | |||||
| Incumbent Fiber | 144,100 | 123,500 | 17% | ||
| Incumbent Copper | 71,100 | 102,000 | (30)% | ||
| Expansion Fiber | 191,200 | 150,700 | 27% | ||
| Cable | 173,200 | 186,100 | (7)% | ||
| Total Broadband | 579,600 | 562,400 | 3% | ||
| Video | 104,000 | 114,300 | (9)% | ||
| Voice | 204,100 | 242,200 | (16)% | ||
| Wireless | 10,500 | 2,200 | N/M | ||
| Total Residential Connections | 898,200 | 921,100 | (2)% | ||
| Commercial connections | 162,600 | 180,300 | (10)% | ||
| Total connections | 1,060,800 | 1,101,300 | (4)% | ||
| Total residential fiber net adds | 16,700 | 11,200 | 50% | ||
| Total residential broadband net adds | 7,200 | 4,600 | 55% | ||
| Residential fiber churn | 1.3% | 1.5% | |||
| Total residential broadband churn | 1.7% | 1.7% | |||
N/M - Percentage change not meaningful
Numbers may not foot due to rounding.
Total connections decreased due to declines in legacy voice and video products, as well as broadband connections in copper and cable markets, partially offset by growth in fiber markets and wireless connections.
Divestitures in 2025 resulted in a decrease of 12,500 connections, including 5,100 residential broadband connections. Acquisition in 2026 resulted in an increase of 7,800 connections, including 4,700 residential broadband connections.
Residential Broadband Connections by Speed
As of September 30,
Residential broadband customers continue to take higher speeds with 89% on 100 Mbps or higher products and 54% on 1Gig+ products.
Residential Revenue per Connection
Total residential revenue per connection increased by 2% for the three months ended September 30, 2026, and 1% for the nine months ended September 30, 2026 due primarily to price increases and customer product mix, partially offset by promotional activity.
Financial Overview — TDS Telecom
| Three Months EndedSeptember 30, | Nine Months EndedSeptember 30, | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2025 | 2026 vs. 2025 | 2026 | 2025 | 2026 vs. 2025 | |
| (Dollars in thousands) | ||||||
| Residential | ||||||
| Incumbent | $74,948 | $81,910 | (8)% | $228,108 | $252,168 | (10)% |
| Expansion | 48,310 | 39,610 | 22% | 137,528 | 110,596 | 24% |
| Cable | 55,909 | 60,231 | (7)% | 169,891 | 186,253 | (9)% |
| Total residential | 179,167 | 181,751 | (1)% | 535,527 | 549,017 | (2)% |
| Commercial | 32,451 | 34,066 | (5)% | 98,022 | 103,317 | (5)% |
| Wholesale | 35,588 | 39,153 | (9)% | 111,522 | 124,534 | (10)% |
| Total service revenues | 247,206 | 254,970 | (3)% | 745,071 | 776,868 | (4)% |
| Equipment revenues | 59 | 141 | (58)% | 172 | 535 | (68)% |
| Total operating revenues | 247,265 | 255,111 | (3)% | 745,243 | 777,403 | (4)% |
| Cost of operations (excluding Depreciation, amortization and accretion reported below) | 103,180 | 102,253 | 1% | 300,944 | 300,265 | — |
| Cost of equipment and products | 173 | 182 | (5)% | 402 | 562 | (28)% |
| Selling, general and administrative | 84,648 | 79,201 | 7% | 244,747 | 244,905 | — |
| Depreciation, amortization and accretion | 75,985 | 78,901 | (4)% | 222,127 | 223,478 | (1)% |
| (Gain) loss on asset disposals, net | 1,265 | 22 | N/M | 7,057 | 7,890 | (11)% |
| (Gain) loss on sale of business and other exit costs, net | (515) | 2,844 | N/M | 1,046 | (5,235) | N/M |
| (Gain) loss on license sales and exchanges, net | — | — | — | (1,600) | — | N/M |
| Total operating expenses | 264,736 | 263,403 | 1% | 774,723 | 771,865 | — |
| Operating income (loss) | $(17,471) | $(8,292) | N/M | $(29,480) | $5,538 | N/M |
| Net income (loss) | $(11,954) | $(282) | N/M | $(15,900) | $19,329 | N/M |
| Adjusted OIBDA (Non-GAAP)1 | $63,493 | $76,972 | (18)% | $203,466 | $235,168 | (13)% |
| Adjusted EBITDA (Non-GAAP)1 | $65,859 | $80,491 | (18)% | $210,071 | $245,352 | (14)% |
| Capital expenditures2 | $251,463 | $102,429 | N/M | $556,623 | $251,486 | N/M |
N/M - Percentage change not meaningful.
1 Refer to Supplemental Information Relating to Non-GAAP Financial Measures within this MD&A for a reconciliation of this measure.
2 Refer to Liquidity and Capital Resources within this MD&A for additional information on Capital expenditures.
Operating Revenues
Three Months Ended September 30, 2026 and 2025
Operating Revenues
Nine Months Ended September 30, 2026 and 2025
Residential revenues consist of:
Broadband services
Video services, including cloud-based video services, IPTV, traditional cable programming and satellite offerings
Voice services
Wireless services
Commercial revenues consist of:
High-speed and dedicated business internet services
Video services
Voice services
Wireless services
Wholesale revenues consist of:
Network access services primarily related to interexchange and wireless carriers for carrying data and voice traffic on TDS Telecom's networks
Federal and state regulatory support, including E-ACAM
Key components of changes in the statement of operations items were as follows:
Total operating revenues
Residential revenues decreased for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2026, due primarily to declines in legacy markets and divestitures, partially offset by growth in expansion markets and price increases.
Commercial revenues decreased for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2026, due primarily to declining connections in legacy markets and divestitures.
Wholesale revenues decreased for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2026, due primarily to divestitures and the continued decline of special access circuits.
The 2025 divestitures contributed a decrease of $4.1 million in operating revenues from the comparable three months ended September 30, 2025 and a decrease of $15.4 million in operating revenues from the comparable nine months ended September 30, 2025.
Selling, general and administrative
Selling, general and administrative expenses increased for the three months ended September 30, 2026, due primarily to higher employee-related costs to support growth and reflect inflationary pressures, as well as severance charges, partially offset by lower regulatory fees.
(Gain) loss on sale of business and other exit costs, net
(Gain) loss on sale of business fluctuated for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2026 due to the divestitures of certain markets in 2025.
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