T-Mobile/Sprint Road to Success Getting More Complicated, Say Analysts
T-Mobile/Sprint suffered two blows last week, with the trial of the case against the deal shifted to start Dec. 9 and Texas joining the case. Both could prove harmful to completing the deal, analysts said. The Texas attorney general is…
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the first Republican to join the suit in New York. “With the trial now likely to start on December 9 and last two to three weeks, and with writing the decision likely to take four to six weeks (plus a little extra time due to the holidays), we do not expect a trial court decision until late January or early February,” said New Street’s Blair Levin in a note to investors. The delay hurts Dish Network and Sprint more than T-Mobile, he said: “T-Mobile is full steam ahead executing on its plans and, doing well while doing so.” Texas AG Ken Paxton's joining the case “clearly creates better political optics for the states and increases the odds that other states, particularly Republican controlled states, will join,” Levin said. “Ultimately we are dubious it really affects the outcome of a trial -- Texas joining does not change the law, the precedent, or the facts to be tried -- but it does give the states less motive to settle.” After the “euphoria” over the settlement with DOJ (see 1907260021) T-Mobile got “two pretty big blows,” wrote Well Fargo’s Jennifer Fritzsche: “Put another way, if settlement does not come before hand we could be in our winter boots and mittens when we get resolution.” Dec. 9 “will represent 589 days from when the deal was originally announced,” she said.