BCE on Wednesday said its quarterly profit was dented by the restructuring costs associated with the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan’s $34bn leveraged buy-out of the communications group.

In its first earnings report since Canadian courts in June approved plans for the buy-out, the Montreal-based company said second-quarter profits dropped 44 per cent – from C$667m (US$637m), or 83 cents a share, to C$361m, or 45 cents a share.