Airtel Africa recently released its financial report for the first half of fiscal year 2024, revealing a decline in pretax profit. Despite this, the company experienced double-digit constant-currency revenue growth in all segments.
According to the Africa-focused telecom and mobile money-services company, pretax profit for the six-month period ending on September 30 amounted to $12 million, compared to $516 million during the same period the previous year.
However, Airtel Africa’s preferred metric, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA), showed positive performance. It rose to $1.30 billion from $1.255 billion, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion provided by six analysts.
The company attributed this growth to increased revenue supported by improved operating efficiencies. These efficiencies were able to counteract inflationary cost pressures, resulting in a net revenue increase from $2.57 billion to $2.62 billion. This growth was driven by a 9.7% increase in the customer base and a 9.8% increase in average revenue per user.
Despite challenges such as rising diesel prices in Nigeria, Airtel Africa remains confident in its ability to deliver against growth opportunities. The company aims to mitigate the impact of these challenges through operational leverage and cost efficiencies, with a focus on improving the EBITDA margin for fiscal year 2024 compared to fiscal year 2023.
In line with the company’s progressive dividend policy, the board has declared an interim dividend of 2.38 cents per share, representing a 9% increase.
Airtel Africa’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Olusegun Ogunsanya, stated, “Our strong operating performance continues to make us a stronger and bigger company, which is well positioned to deliver against the growth opportunities these markets offer.”
