Bharti Airtel Q1 results: Net profit nearly flat at Rs 1,613 cr; ARPU rises to Rs 200

Telecom major Bharti Airtel on Thursday reported an over 14% rise in first-quarter revenue, helped by strong addition of 4G users. However, the company reported nearly flat net profit as it intensified its 5G network roll out and took a foreign-exchange hit on its Nigerian business.

Consolidated revenue rose 14% to Rs 37,440 crore for the quarter ended June 30, the company said in a filing.

The telco said its ARPU (average revenue per user), a key metric for telecom operators, rose to Rs 200 in Q1FY24 as against Rs 193 in Q4FY23 and Rs 183 in Q1FY23. The company took a one-time foreign-exchange loss of Rs 3,416 crore in Nigeria.

Airtel's net profit in June quarter rose marginally to Rs 1,613 crore as against Rs 1,607 crore in the year-ago period. 

Gopal Vittal, MD, Bharti Airtel said: “We have delivered yet another quarter of strong and competitive growth across all our businesses. Our consolidated revenue grew sequentially by 4.0%, and EBITDA margin expanded to 52.7%, underscoring the simplicity and execution of our strategy. Our focuson winning quality customers and driving premiumisation has helped us add 5.6 million new 4G customers and the highest ever postpaid customers in any one quarter. We exit the quarter with an industry leading ARPU of Rs 200. Homes, Enterprise and our digital businesses continue to exhibit strong growth momentum, reflecting the resilience and strength of our overall portfolio. We continue to make strides on our ESG agenda and in leading the charter in India for sustainable practices."

The company also added 5.6 million 4G subscribers during the quarter, with its total 4G customer count growing 2.5% from the previous quarter and 11.9% from a year ago to 229.7 million.

The company also made part prepayment of Rs 8,024 crore towards liabilities pertaining to spectrum acquired in 2015 auction.

On Thursday, Airtel's scrip on BSE closed 0.6% lower at Rs 871.95.