Telcos Reign in Spending, With Ripple Effect

Dec. 5 -- When big-spending companies say they’re tightening their belts, your portfolio might end up feeling the pinch.

A bunch of hefty telecommunications firms have said they plan to reign in their capital expenditures next year. Slower-than-expected sales and trampled stock prices have hurt these once freewheeling companies, and now the spending slowdown is adding to investors’ jitters about future growth prospects of not only these companies, but also of the networkers and equipment companies such as Cisco who are the beneficiaries of the recent spending spree.

And even if you’ve shied away from these more volatile stocks, you may indirectly feel the effects of this penny-pinching: These warnings could be yet another sign that the economy is slowing down, which has across-the-board implications.

Backing Off Big Budget Projects

Why the sudden restraint in shelling out money for building next-generation communications technology? For one thing, loaners aren’t so interested any more in funding these costly projects, forcing many telcos to curb their spending budgets.

BellSouth, which controls local phone service for nine Southeastern states, is among the companies pulling back. The company has said it plans to reduce its 2001 buying budget to between $5.5 billion and $6 billion, down from this year’s planned budget of between $6 billion and $6.5 billion. BellSouth also cut its earnings projections for 2001, citing the costs of developing high-speed Internet access and business ventures in Latin America.

Other large telecom companies have followed suit, namely AT&T,WorldCom and Williams. They have said they will spend less on such equipment as telephone switching gear and routers next year.

“The telcos have over-stretched themselves and will be weak performers next year,” says Michael Boldin, director of real-time economics at Economy.com in West Chester, Pa. “In the phone business prices are falling, and so are margins, and this is a clear sign that supply has outstripped demand. It’s no surprise that these companies are cutting back.”