Bharti Airtel, a telecom major, disclosed a consolidated net profit of Rs 2,072 crore for the fourth quarter of the financial year 2023-24, marking a 31.1% decline from the corresponding period last year.
The company’s consolidated Q4 revenue stood at Rs 37,599 crore, reflecting a 4.4% increase from the previous year. However, this growth was tempered by the devaluation of African currencies, particularly the Nigerian Naira, during the period, as stated by the telecom operator in an exchange filing on May 14.
Although revenue aligned with expectations, net profit fell short of Street estimates. Brokerages had anticipated Airtel’s net profit to range between Rs 2,201 crore and Rs 5,309 crore, and revenue between Rs 38,736 crore and Rs 39,360 crore.
In Q4FY24, India revenue reached Rs 28,513 crore, a 12.9% year-on-year increase. This growth was attributed to improved realisation and robust additions of 4G/5G customers throughout the year.
The company reported consolidated mobile data traffic of 17,702 PBs for the quarter, marking a healthy year-on-year growth of 26.2%.
Consolidated EBITDA increased by 4.2% year-on-year to Rs 19,590 crore in Q4’24, with EBITDA margin at 52.1%. Consolidated EBIT also saw a 0.4% year-on-year rise to Rs 9,423 crore.
Despite the challenges posed by currency devaluation, Airtel maintained its leadership position in the postpaid segment, adding 0.8 million net customers in Q4’24, reaching a customer base of 51.2 million (including IoT).
The company also expanded its 4G/5G data customer base by 28.6 million over the last year, an increase of 12.8% year-on-year.
Airtel reinforced its network coverage by deploying 10.5k towers during the quarter and 43,102 towers throughout the year to enhance connectivity in both rural and urban areas.
The telco’s homes business sustained its growth momentum with a revenue growth of 20.0% year-on-year, while its Airtel Business segment achieved a revenue growth of 14.1% year-on-year.
Additionally, the digital TV business recorded a 6% growth in the quarter, with a customer base of 16.1 million by the end of the quarter.
Overall, Airtel’s performance demonstrated resilience across customer metrics and financial parameters despite external challenges, with a continued focus on enhancing customer experience and expanding its digital offerings.
