Is the Telstra share price a buy after increasing mobile plan prices?

The Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price has been on the rise this year, it’s up close to around 10% in 2026. Telstra recently gave another reason why investors may be excited by the ASX telco share as an investment opportunity.

Telstra offers a variety of services to customers of different sizes. Some of its biggest earnings generators include mobile subscriptions, device sales, NBN connections, cable infrastructure, cybersecurity and so on.

The company announced price rises for subscribers. Let’s take a look at what was announced and what experts think of it.

Mobile price rise

In an online statement, Telstra announced it’s increasing prices from 5 May 2026.

Telstra said that its customers are doing more on its network than ever before and it’s investing to deliver the “best experience available”, while helping Australians to stay connected.

The ASX telco share said from 5 May that most postpaid plans will increase by $4 per month, with the price of the premium plan staying the same.

Pre-paid plans will rise by around $5 and customers will “enjoy increased data allowances across all impacted plans”.

Telstra said that its price changes “help drive ongoing investment in our mobile network infrastructure, enabling innovation and the rollout of new features that expand connectivity options for customers.”

It highlighted satellite-to-mobile messaging as one of the changes it has introduced for customers, who can use that service almost anywhere in Australia when beyond the range of its mobile network and with a clear view of the sky.

Telstra said it’s expanding and upgrading its 5G network, including ‘5G advanced’ in more locations.

What do experts make of this change for the Telstra share price?

Broker UBS noted that these price rises came earlier than expected – in recent times, it has happened in July. The price rises announced are likely to flow through to a greater increase in the average revenue per user (ARPU) than expected.

UBS said that this move gives it comfort that the sector can continue to extract “meaningful price growth from the consumer over the medium term.”

But, the broker also suggested that the price rise could lead to earlier-than-expected customer churn, starting in the fourth quarter of FY26 compared to the previous expectations of the first quarter of FY27.

The broker said its estimates for revenue, operating profit (EBITDA) and net profit for between FY26 to FY28 were largely unchanged because the increase in mobile ARPU growth is expected to be offset by lower subscription growth.

UBS said that due to elevated inflation, the broker thinks the increase will likely be absorbed by customers. Even so, the broker now expects just 0.2% annual subscriber growth in the longer-term, with expectations that Telstra could see a net loss of 16,000 of postpaid and 16,000 of prepaid users in the second half of FY26.

UBS now forecasts that Telstra’s net profit could reach $2.31 billion in FY26 and $2.48 billion in FY27.

The broker has a neutral rating on the telco, with a Telstra share price target of $5.30.

The post Is the Telstra share price a buy after increasing mobile plan prices? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Telstra Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.