Nextel Posts Strong FinancialsNextel Posts Strong Financials

Nextel, which is in the process of merging with Sprint, Thursday reported strong increases in profits and revenue in the last quarter.

Specifically, the wireless operator reported income of $1.4 billion, a 12 percent increase compared to the same quarter a year ago. It reported revenue of $3.8 billion, a 16 percent increase over the year-ago quarter.

In addition, the operator reported 763,000 new subscribers, ending the quarter with 17.8 million subscribers, a 23 percent increase compared to the same quarter a year ago. The merger is expected to close some time in the next several months.

"Second quarter results may be Nextel's last as a standalone company and prove that we continue to aggressively compete in the marketplace while continuing to find the right balance of growth and profitability even as we plan for the merger with Sprint," Tim Donahue, Nextel's president and CEO, said in a statement.