MTN returns to profit on data growth
MTN delivered improved results for the six months ended June 2017, returning to profit, while reporting subscriber growth in South Africa.
Group total revenue increased by 6.7% to R64.3 billion, while reported headline earnings per share (HEPS) improved to 217 cents compared to a 271 cents headline loss per share in the comparable period.
Data revenue increased by 31.9%, benefiting from significantly improved data network quality and capacity, and a 9.1% increase in data users to 122.7 million. Data revenue increased by 14.4% in South Africa, the company said.
Capex decreased by 25.2% to R10.3 billion. Capex in the first half of the year was slower than expected, impacted by limited foreign currency availability in Nigeria, some execution challenges, as well as the seasonality of the capex cycle, MTN said.
Group subscriber numbers in the period decreased by 3.6% to 231.8 million impacted by a decline in subscriber numbers in MTN Nigeria and MTN Ghana.
The board declared an interim dividend of 250 cents per share. This is in line with the FY2017 guidance of 700 cents per share, the company said.
South Africa results:
- Subscribers increased by 1.5% to 31.2 million
- Revenue increased by 1.6%
- Service revenue increased by 5.2%
- Data revenue increased by 18.5%
- Digital revenue increased by 37.6%
- Capex decreased by 27.2% to R3.5 billion
MTN South Africa delivered an encouraging performance, supported by a strong prepaid performance and a network expansion.
The prepaid segment’s subscriber base increased by 1.7% to 26 million, while the postpaid segment showed early signs of a recovery and increased its subscriber base by 0.2% to 5.2 million.
Total revenue increased by 1.6% to R20.2 billion. Service revenue increased by 5.2% to R16.75 billion, supported by strong growth in data revenue and digital revenue, up 18.5% and 37.6% respectively.
Prepaid service revenue increased by 9.2% while the group recorded a decline in postpaid service revenue, down by 3.9%.
During the past six months the management team undertook a thorough review of the group strategy and developed a clear growth plan for MTN that will be arranged under six strategic pillars (BRIGHT) comprising: Best customer experience; Returns and efficiency focus; IGNITE commercial performance; Growth through data and digital; Hearts and minds; and Technology excellence.
BRIGHT, it said, builds on work done over the past 18 months, in particular the Project IGNITE, the operational execution programme embarked on last year, in the company’s two largest markets MTN South Africa and MTN Nigeria.
Group president and CEO, Rob Shuter, said: “We are seeing pleasing progress in our key growth drivers of data and digital services against headwinds of challenging macro-economic conditions and foreign exchange currency pressures.
“We continue to strengthen our focus on operational excellence with our six strategic pillars integrated in our new BRIGHT strategy. Our focus during the second half of the year will be to entrench our BRIGHT strategy, complete our network investment programme and build medium-term financial KPIs and targets for the BRIGHT strategy.”
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