(Reuters) – Bharti Airtel, India’s second-largest telecom operator, beat quarterly profit estimates on Tuesday, helped by a continued boost in its revenue per user from last year’s price hikes and a growing subscriber base.
The company reported a consolidated net profit of 110.22 billion rupees ($1.29 billion) for the quarter ending March 31, above analysts’ average expectation of 65.24 billion rupees, as per data compiled by LSEG.
Airtel benefited from a net tax gain of 28.92 billion rupees during the quarter.
Its average revenue per user (ARPU) – a key telecom performance metric – rose 17.2% year-on-year to 245 rupees. The company has the highest ARPU among peers.
Telecom firms continue to benefit from last year’s tariff hikes, analysts have said.
India’s three private mobile carriers – Reliance Industries-owned-Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea – raised tariffs in July 2024 for the first time in over two years, aiming to recoup billions invested in 5G technology.
Last month, Jio reported an ARPU of 206.2 rupees for the quarter and a 24.5% rise in profit. Vodafone Idea has yet to report results.
India’s telecom sector has seen intense competition for market share since Jio’s entry in 2017, with it overtaking peers to command the largest user base.
Airtel’s user base rose 4.4% year-on-year to 424 million as of March 31, compared to Jio’s 488.2 million.
Its revenue from operations came in at 478.76 billion rupees, below analysts’ estimate of 487.47 billion rupees.
The March quarter marked the first time Airtel’s results fully reflected the revenue contribution from unit Indus Towers, which it began consolidating after gaining a controlling stake last year.
Shares of Bharti Airtel closed 2.7% lower ahead of results.
($1 = 85.2780 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Aleef Jahan in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D’Souza and Shailesh Kuber)
