Telus Corporation (TU) is experiencing a long decline, with shares now priced at $12.99, down 0.70% today. The stock’s downward trend started in late 2022 and continues to encounter various resistance levels. The trendline, which began at the peak of $22 in November 2022, has continuously rejected attempts to rally over the past two years. Currently, there is a horizontal resistance level at $13.62. Despite several attempts to break through this point in late 2024, the stock has consistently retreated. The latest attempt on December 19 showed promise but was blocked by sellers, highlighting the difficulty of overcoming this resistance. TU’s challenges are intensified by its dual resistance structure. To move past the $13.62 level and the descending trendline, the stock needs strong buying pressure and a fundamental market shift that hasn’t happened yet. If the price dips below $12.50, it could quickly fall towards $12.00 or $11.50. For the stock to gain upward momentum, bulls need it to convincingly exceed $13.62 with significant trading volume. Only then can they aim for the tough descending trendline. Until a breakthrough occurs, TU’s stock is likely to remain within its current range. As of December 30, 2025, Telus is trading at $12.99, showing a clear bearish setup due to ongoing technical weakness. The broader economic landscape supports this outlook, as the Bank of Canada has maintained interest rates above 4.5% for most of 2025. This high rate environment puts substantial pressure on capital-intensive companies like Telus, making it hard for these stocks to attract investment. Those who believe the downtrend will continue might consider buying puts as a straightforward strategy. Given the strong resistance at $13.62 and the potential support level at $12.50, February or March 2026 puts with strikes of $12.00 or lower would be advisable. This allows time for the trade to unfold if technical support fails early in the new year. This bearish view is supported by recent fundamental data. The Q3 2025 earnings report from November revealed that subscriber growth hit its lowest point since 2019, with competitors like Freedom Mobile aggressively capturing market share. Data from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) at the end of 2025 showed that major providers lost nearly 1% market share over the past year. Another strategy is to sell the resistance using credit spreads. We could look into selling a January 2026 bear call spread, which involves selling $13.50 or $14.00 strike calls while buying a higher strike for safety. This trade takes advantage of time decay and the stock’s struggle to break through the established $13.62 resistance. The source material indicates that the stock is likely to “chop,” suggesting that premium-selling strategies could work well. If implied volatility remains high due to the recent decline, an iron condor with short strikes around $12.00 and $14.00 could benefit from this range-bound movement. This strategy bets that Telus will stay between its key support and resistance levels until the January 2026 expiration. We also need to consider the dividend, which now yields over 7%, a level not seen since the 2008 financial crisis. While this high yield might seem attractive, it often signals concerns about future cash flow and the sustainability of dividends—especially since the rate hikes that began in 2022 led to this extended decline. For any speculative bulls, the strategy hinges on a clear breakout with high volume above $13.62. A cost-effective way to position for this unlikely scenario would be to buy far out-of-the-money calls, like the March 2026 $15 strike calls. This is a low-probability trade, treating a small investment like a lottery ticket for a sudden market shift.

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