Bharti Airtel Q2 results: Telco posts net loss of Rs 763 crore, revenue jumps 22%

Bharti Airtel on Tuesday reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 763.2 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2020. The telecom major's net loss has narrowed from Rs 23,405 crore reported in the year ago period.

The telco's revenue from operations rose 22.02 per cent to Rs 25,785 crore from Rs 21,131 crore in the same period last year on the back of strong growth across the geographies and segments. This was also supported by higher tariffs and increase in data usage during coronavirus lockdown.

Bharti Airtel's India business also reported strong growth across revenue and margins. India revenues rose 22 per cent YoY to Rs 18,747 crore, while EBITDA margin was up 4.7 per cent at 45.8 per cent. Mobile revenues grew by 26 per cent and mobile average revenue per user (ARPU), a measure of profitability, improves to Rs 162 from Rs 128 a year ago.

"This is an outcome of the company's unrelenting focus on winning with quality customers on the back of a solid network, aspirational brand and delivery of a differentiated experience. Resultantly, ARPU for the quarter is at Rs 162 as compared to Rs 128 in Q2 FY20.

Consolidated operating profit or EBITDA was at Rs 11,848 crore up 32.6 per cent YoY, while EBITDA margin improved by 3.7 per cent YoY to 46 per cent.

Commenting on Q2 results, Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO, India & South Asia, said, "Despite being a seasonally weak quarter, we delivered a strong performance with revenue growing at 22 per cent YoY. In the mobile segment, we added over 14 Mn 4G customers and grew revenues by 26 per cent.Our focus on building the most aspirational brand in Indian telecom to win quality customers is delivering results. Our data consumption grew by 58 per cent YoY which reflects strong engagement of customers on our network. This further underscores our DNA of customer obsession and delivering brilliant experiences through a future ready network and innovative digital platforms."

"We stay committed to improving the profitability of the business. Our continued focus on ARPU improvement and cost optimisation led to EBITDA margin expansion by over 158 bps in the quarter sequentially," he added.

As on September 30, the company had 440 million customers across 16 countries, while it added 14 million 4G customers during July-September quarter of the current fiscal.

Ahead of Q2 results, shares of Bharti Airtel ended Tuesday's trade at Rs 433, down 0.24 per cent, against previous closing price of Rs 434.05on the BSE.

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