Batelco Q1 profit up 6% on revenues, cost management

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Effective cost management and revenue increases have pushed Batelco’s first-quarter profits up, which the company said, “motivates it to continue the year at the same pace.”

Batelco CEO Mikkel Vinter said that the demand for efficient home internet services continues to be high, “as many people are still working and studying from home.”

Batelco, he said, were also creative in coming up with products such as Batelco Red Box to enhance the home WiFi experience.

 Looking ahead, he said that delivering innovative digital services and driving digital growth will be central to its plans.

“We are confident that we have the right strategy and team in place to build on the solid performance of the first quarter of 2021,” Vinter added.

First-quarter results Net profit attributable to equity holders of the company was BD19.7 million (US$52.3m), a 6% increase from BD18.5m (US$49.1m) in the year-ago quarter.

 Batelco attributed the increase to increases in revenues whilst maintaining better control of costs.

Q1 Earnings per share were 11.9 fils compared to 11.2 fils in Q1 2020.

Total comprehensive income attributable to equity holders was BD29.9m (US$79.3m), an increase of 151% from BD11.9m (US$31.6m) in the prior-year quarter.

Q1 Revenues was BD99.7m (US$264.5m), a 2% increase from BD97.6m (US$258.9m) in Q1 2020.

Batelco attributed the increase in revenues mainly to YoY increases in fixed broadband, adjacent services and wholesale revenues of 19%, 17% and 8%, respectively.

 Quarterly operating profit was up by 4% to BD25.4m (US$67.4m) from BD24.5m (US$65.0m) in Q1 2020.

EBITDA stands at BD43.8m (US$116.2m) compared to BD41.6m (US$110.3m) in Q1 2020, an increase of 5% with a healthy EBITDA margin of 44%.

Total assets were BD1,016.1m (US$2,695.2m) as of 31 March 2021 have increased by 2% compared to total assets of BD992.2m (US$2,631.8m) as of 31 December 2020.

Cash and bank balances stood at BD200.2m (US$531.0m).

Commenting on the results, Batelco Chairman Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said, “The positive start to the year is the result of Batelco’s strategic direction to enhance its core business with a focus on connectivity and growing ICT services, while effectively managing costs.”

“Meeting our shareholders’ expectations is a priority, and we will remain focussed on maximizing shareholder value in line with what we had achieved in 2020.

We have started 2021 on a strong note, and over the coming months, we will continue to build on this positive trend,” Shaikh Abdulla added. “We have invested in the further development of our networks, leading to Batelco being named by Speedtest by Ookla as Bahrain’s Top-Rated Mobile Network, an achievement we are proud of,” Batelco CEO Mikkel Vinter said.

Vinter continued by saying, “Developing our ICT portfolio remains constant with good progress for our Data Centre plans during the first quarter.

 We are glad to see the positive take-up for its services with key customers, particularly in the banking and finance sector.”