Out Fox The $treet

CEO John Legere officially announced plans to retire May 1, 2020. Top executives don't randomly leave a company when a big opportunity exists. The regulatory delays are pushing the T-Mobile/Sprint 5G network buildout behind AT&T and Verizon. Avoid the stock still trading near the peak after 7 years of strong outperformance. The official loss of a dynamic CEO by  T-Mobile  ( TMUS ) has been mostly ignored by the market this week. With the pending merger of  Sprint  ( S ), the move appears to suggest John Legere doesn't see the ability to generate the outsized gains of the past decade. The departure of several executives while the Sprint deal still faces  regulatory hurdles  makes the stock one to avoid. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha.  Disclosure: Long AAPL. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

The Justice Department agreed to a settlement with T-Mobile and Sprint, removing another hurdle from closing the merger. Thirteen state attorneys general are still suing to block the merger. Dish remains in no position to effectively launch at viable 5G network. The risk/reward equation on Sprint heavily tilts towards high downside risk. As  Sprint  ( S ) surged to $8 based on a  DOJ approval clearance  of the combination with  T-Mobile  ( TMUS ), a large risk still exists the merger will fail to obtain all the necessary regulatory approvals. The stock is not correctly priced for the binary outcome with large downside risk highlighted in  previous research  from a failure to close the merger while the upside gains are now limited. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha.  Update - August 2  1st Republican state joins the lawsuit to block the merger. The deal is still not guaranteed to obtain approval placing Sprint ...

Seeking Alpha provided this snippet where the T-Mobile (TMUS)/Sprint (S) merger is on hold again. T-Mobile ( TMUS   -1.9% ) and Sprint ( S   -3.6% ) are sliding off a new  Wall Street Journal  report that  merger talks have slowed , over conditions around the involvement of Dish Network ( DISH   +0.5% ) in the deal. Talks are ongoing, but the two wireless carriers are planning to extend their merger agreement beyond its July 29 deadline to buy more time, according to the report -- a second extension of a deal that has dragged out more than a year. A big part of the merger holdup is the requirement of the DOJ for a 4th viable wireless carrier to exist. For this reason, my prediction has long held that the merger will get blocked. Dish doesn't appear ready to step-up to the plate without major handouts and T-Mobile doesn't want the merger, if the end result is to create a strong 4th competitor. The prediction still remains that the merger gets blocke...

Sprint reports improving FQ2 results. The highlights and CEO message aren't supportive of regulatory approval of a merger with T-Mobile. Net debt position remains a problem for stock gains absent a merger and industry consolidation. Along with  FQ2 results ,  Sprint  ( S ) released data points that aren't supportive of an industry needing consolidation. My  investment thesis  continues to suggest the stock isn't worth much more than the current price based on the results and the reported deal on the table with  T-Mobile  ( TMUS ). Read the full article at Seeking Alpha.  Disclosure: No position. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

The Sprint CEO claimed an infection point with the FQ2 earnings results. The company added postpaid phone customers while still burning large amounts of cash. The recommendation is to continue avoiding the stock. Anybody following Sprint (NYSE: S ) over the last few years is probably completely confused on where the wireless operator is heading. Under the previous CEO, Sprint was attempting to build the best wireless network in the country due to a large spectrum position. Under the current CEO, the company has veered in several directions with a partial attempt to build the best network, but mostly a focus on providing consumers with the lowest costs. In the process, CEO Marcelo Claure has ushered in cost cuts and reigned in capital spending that make it difficult to compete with the wireless leaders, AT&T (NYSE: T ) and Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ ). Read the full article on Seeking Alpha. Disclosure: No position ...

Sprint continues to struggle with the stock hitting new multi-year lows and plunging on funding fears. T-Mobile continues to gain market share and likely officially surpassed Sprint for the No. 3 position in the domestic wireless market. Investors need to avoid the stock until funding issues are revolved. Whether legitimate or not, the greatest fears in owning Sprint (NYSE: S ) for the last year were realized during trading on Wednesday. Most shareholders don't want to hear it, but the biggest failure was an assumption that Softbank (OTCPK: SFTBY ) and Chairman Son would bail the company out of financial purgatory. Read the full article at Seeking Alpha. Disclosure: No position mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

Summary Sprint reports dismal quarter with declining postpaid phone users and ABPU. The company continues burning cash at an alarming rate causing several analysts to question its cash position. Investors should continue avoiding the stock until trends improve. Another quarter and Sprint (NYSE: S ) still isn't making any real progress toward growing postpaid phone subscribers. The wireless provider has aggressively spent on promotions, but it has made a huge mistake in thinking the high-quality 4G, smartphone customer would switch networks for a pricing gimmick. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha. Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

Summary Sprint insiders make large stock purchases at prices around $5. The company hasn't resolved liquidity issues with a likely asset sale required. The pricing war and liquidity situation haven't improved suggesting investors don't follow the insiders in purchasing the stock at $5. In the last couple of weeks, it was disclosed that Sprint (NYSE: S ) CEO Marcelo Clarue and CFO Joseph Euteneuer purchased shares of the struggling wireless provider. The amounts were impressive with the CEO buying five million shares of the company's stock for nearly $25 million and the CFO buying roughly $100,000 worth of stock. Though multiple insider purchases of that magnitude are typically a bullish signal, one major issue needs resolution before investors should blindly follow the executives into the stock. Read the full article at Seeking Alpha. Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more...

Summary Sprint reported Q214 numbers that beat estimates. Some trends below the headline numbers are discouraging. Expect the stock to struggle unless it merges with T-Mobile to reduce the competitive pricing environment. The latest quarterly report from Sprint (NYSE: S ) shows some improvements in the cost structure leading to improved results. Unfortunately for investors, hidden in the details are some concerning trends suggesting the company might need the rumored merger with T-Mobile US (NYSE: TMUS ) to reduce the competitive pricing environment. Read the full article at Seeking Alpha. Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

With rumors and speculation swirling around a potential merger between Sprint ( NYSE: S     ) and T-Mobile US ( NYSE: TMUS     ) , a big question is whether such a move would reward shareholders. In theory, consolidation in the wireless space should eliminate the aggressive pricing in the sector and benefit the remaining companies. Based on the recent consolidation to three major legacy airlines, the airline sector is stronger and more profitable but not all of the players are performing the same. In addition, the consolidation in the wireless sector would leave AT&T ( NYSE: T     ) and Verizon ( NYSE: VZ     ) as dominant players with the new Sprint a very distant third. Read the full article here . Disclosure: Long T. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

For the fourth quarter of 2013, Verizon Communications ( NYSE: VZ     ) reported a surge in operating margins in the wireless sector due to lower subsidies for new accounts. The question is whether the wireless provider can continue generating these higher margins with Sprint Nextel  ( NYSE: S     ) and T-Mobile ( NYSE: TMUS     ) in customer-acquisition mode. While Verizon is generating solid gains in FiOS Internet and video segments, the company is increasingly dominated by its wireless division. In total, fourth-quarter revenue only gained 3.4%, but the company was able to hold expenses down. The combination sent operating margins surging, but the lack of spending to attract new customers could hurt growth in 2014 and beyond. Read the full article here . Disclosure: No position mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

Sprint Nextel Corp (S) continues an impressive comeback that has seen the number three domestic wireless provider reclaim its position as a force in the domestic markets. Unfortunately though, news came out today that fourth place provider T-Mobile (DTEGY.PK) just scored a $2.4B cash deal to leaseback cell towers, just weeks after T-Mobile hired a heavy hitting CEO to reinvigorate subscriber growth with a target on Sprint. As Stone Fox Capital wrote back at the end of August, Sprint was starting to thrive by being the leading wireless provider with an unlimited data plan and the non-duopoly player that has the iPhone. Do these announcements change the dynamics in the sector? The last thing Sprint needs is a competitor attacking their base just as the company is getting its act together. Competition remains one of the biggest drawbacks to investing in the wireless service provider sector. Read the full article at Seeking Alpha. Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review ...

Sprint (S) continues with an aggressive plan of unlimited data pricing while wireless leaders AT&T (T) and Verizon (VZ) move towards capped data plans. Back in May, Sprint aggresively promoted an unlimited plan for the iPhone 4s to directly attack fed-up Verizon customers. The company offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services serving more than 56M customers. It offers mobile data services under both the Sprint and Nextel brands plus prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless. The telecom sector has been ripe with pricing pressure for decades now. The question remains whether this move is good for Sprint or incredibly naive for the market leaders. Read the full article at Seeking Alpha. Disclosure: No positions mentioned. Please review the disclaimer page for more details. 

After a wild couple of weeks in the domestic wireless sector following the  announcement  that AT&T ( T ) would purchase T-Mobile from Deustche TeleKom ( DTEGY.PK ) in a $39B deal, the speculation in the media has centered mostly around other potential wireless mergers in the U.S. Odd, considering that the U.S. market is very mature and past major telecom mergers a la Sprint ( S ) and Nextel in the wireless sector and MCI ( MCIP ) and WorldCom in the wireline/data sector have largely been flops. Between merging networks and combining billing systems, it's extremely time-consuming and underproductive to undertake (trust me, I know from first-hand experience of working the projects of trying to merge the billing systems of MCI and WorldCom)..... Read the full story at Seeking Alpha . Disclosure: Long MICC and NIHD for client and personal accounts. Please review the disclaimer page.