(Bloomberg) — Dish Network Corp. slumped to a two-year low, reflecting investor disappointment over the outlook for the company’s 5G wireless network and plans to transition from a satellite TV provider to a mobile broadband competitor.
The shares were down 11% to $19.27 at 11:32 a.m. in New York, the lowest price since April 2020. They had lost 33% this year through Tuesday’s close.
The cloud-based wireless network will attract as many as 40 million subscribers and lift Dish’s annual revenue above $30 billion, co-founder Charlie Ergen and four of his top executives told analysts at a presentation in Las Vegas Tuesday. But some found that less than ideal.
“Overall we found the company’s targets extremely optimistic and heard varying levels of conviction in them from management — we take them more as an indication of where Dish hopes to go,” JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Phil Cusick wrote in a note.
In addition to building a more nimble network than those operated today by Verizon Communications Inc., AT&T Inc. and T-Mobile US Inc., Dish says it will also unseat the competition through “disruptive” pricing at its Boost mobile business.
As part of that effort, the company started offering a BoostOne mobile app that lets pay-as-you-go users reduce their charges by viewing ads and loading apps. The company also announced Boost Infinite, its first regular monthly plan, which is intended to take share from its bigger rivals.
Last week, Dish launched service in Las Vegas for its 5G network, called Project Genesis. The $30-a-month package includes unlimited calling, text and data, and is expected to be available in 120 cities in June.
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