Analysts: T-Mobile/Dish deal still the most likely M&A option for the carrier

T-Mobile is unlikely to strike a deal in the near term with any other cable or telecommunications providers aside from Dish Network, according to a report from Wall Street firm Macquarie Capital. In a research note assessing the impact of Charter Communications' proposed $56.7 billion purchase of Time Warner Cable, Macquarie analysts said that other potential suitors or partners for T-Mobile are unlikely to make a move. Those include French telecommunications group Altice, which unveiled plans to buy a $9.1 billion for a controlling interest in US cable operator Suddenlink Communications.

Comcast, which was thwarted by regulatory opposition in its own bid for Time Warner Cable, is also seen as a potential--if unlikely--suitor for T-Mobile. "For Comcast, an outright purchase of a wireless network is possible, but likely premature at this point; we believe the company is likely to focus on returning capital to shareholders in the near-term," the analysts wrote. The most likely scenario, the analysts wrote, is that T-Mobile will remain independent for the next year, or that Dish will strike a deal for T-Mobile at around $40 per share if it can persuade T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom on the financing of the deal.