Sprint's 5-Year Turnaround Plan Gets A Boost From iPhone 7

Sprint Corp S CEO Marcelo Claure appeared on CNBC to talk about the iPhone 7 launch and touch on the company's five-year turnaround plan.

All of Sprint's employees have an incentive package tied to the wireless carrier's turnaround; no equity will be offered until the stock price hits the $8 mark.

Claure highlighted that a recent study by JD Power and Associates ranked Sprint the No. 2 network behind Verizon, in five of six top markets in the US.

Sprint's churn rate is at its lowest level in 21 years since the company entered the wireless business.

"Customers are coming, they are testing the product, and they are staying," said Claure.

Related Link: Carriers Willing To Face Revenue Pressures From iPhone Promos In Order To Chase Market Share

iPhone 7 A Smashing Success For Sprint

The number of Apple Inc. AAPL iPhone 7 orders for Sprint is four to five times  higher than last year for the 6S release.

Sprint does have more customers than last year, which contributed to the increase in orders, but Claure said "this quarter alone we are net positive against all three carriers alone, meaning we have more customers coming from the other carriers than [leaving Sprint]."

Sprint's CEO also took the opportunity to speak on the Samsung Electronics SSNLF Galaxy Note 7 recall, and felt that the issue will be forgotten in six months.

"Yes, Sprint is not better than Verizon yet, but we are the comeback story," he added.