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Batelco posts BD 16 million net profit for Q1 of the year [Bahrain News Agency](Bahrain News Agency Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Manama, April 27 (BNA)-- Batelco Group, a regional telecommunications operator with operations across six countries, reported a net profit of BD16.1 million ($42.7 million) for the first quarter of the year. The results showed an 8 per cent decrease compared to BD17.5 million ($46.4 million) for the corresponding period in 2011. The period was marked by continued market leadership in Bahrain, its home market, and solid contributions from overseas markets especially from Jordan and Kuwait, said a statement. The EBITDA for the period was BD28.3 million, representing a 36 per cent margin, versus BD32.6 million for the same period in 2011. The group's gross revenues stood at BD78 million for the period, down 4 per cent from BD80.8 million in Q1 last year. Operating Profit for the quarter was BD19.6 million versus BD23.3 million for the corresponding period in 2011. In line with ongoing efforts to diversify revenues and maximise investments, the Group saw a healthy contribution from overseas markets. At the end of the first quarter, 38 per cent of revenues and 34 per cent of operating profit were generated from markets outside of Bahrain, the group said. The group's balance sheet also remained strong. As of March 31, 2012, the group had low debt and significant cash and bank balances of BD61.8 million. While this reflects a decline of 6 per cent when compared to the same period last year, it takes into account the impact of a substantial one-off payment made in January 2012 for the acquisition of a 3G licence for Umniah, the group's majority owned Jordanian subsidiary. Earnings per share for the period stood at 11.2 fils. Batelco chairman Shaikh Hamad bin Abdulla Al Khalifa announced the group's first quarter 2012 results following a meeting of the Board of Directors at Batelco's Hamala headquarters. He stated: "During the first quarter of 2012, we continued to focus our efforts on maximising the performance of our investments overseas whilst maintaining market leadership in the Kingdom of Bahrain. In line with the guidance that we provided at the outset of the year, our results for the quarter reflected the continued impact of significant competition in Bahrain and in the highly competitive environments across the Mena markets in which we operate. "We are nevertheless pleased with the ability of the group companies to continue to deliver solid results, despite challenging operating environments, as evidenced by strong cash flow generation during the period and the overall strength of our balance sheet. Having ended the quarter with significant cash balances despite significant one-off capital expenditures, we continue to be in a strong position to deploy our resources towards further strengthening our existing operations and making investments in the growth and expansion of the group, which is a key priority in 2012 as we work to build scale and deliver even greater value for customers and shareholders." Commenting on the highlights for the quarter, group CEO Shaikh Mohamed bin Isa Al Khalifa, said: "Operationally, we are pleased with the effective execution of our strategy during the first quarter. It is our aim to retain mobile, broadband and enterprise customers in Bahrain, which we've done a great job of. It is also a priority to further build our subscriber base overseas. "With the sale of STel which was announced in February 2012, the group's adjusted subscriber base now stands at some 6.9 million users across six markets. We are focused on ensuring that our operations in each of these markets remain as competitive as possible whilst also working to identify new ways to grow and add customers – both organically and through acquisitions - in existing territories and in others that present a compelling opportunity." AOQ Publishing Rights Reserved to Bahrain News Agency (c) 2012 Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company |