By- Akriti Mehrotra, Research Analyst, StoxBox
– Company reported revenue of Rs. 41,473 crores, up 12.0% YoY / up 7.7% QoQ in Q2FY25, above market expectations of Rs. 41,256 crores owing to strong momentum in India and growth in constant currency in Africa.
– India revenues for Q2 FY25 stood at Rs. 31,561 crores, an increase of 16.9% YoY. Domestic mobile revenues grew 18.5% YoY, driven by increased tariffs, a greater focus on premiumizing the portfolio with quality customers, and an increase in ARPU.
– ARPU for the quarter stood at an industry-leading Rs. 233 in Q2FY25 compared to Rs. 203 in Q2FY24 on consistent strategy of acquiring high-value customers, improved realizations, and pricing strategies. The mobile data consumption was up 22.6% YoY, with consumption per customer at 23.9 GB per month.
– Total customer base stood at 563 million in Q2FY25 compared to 540 million in Q2FY24.
– EBITDA rose 12.0% YoY / up 10.9% QoQ to Rs. 21,846 crores, while EBITDA margin stood at 52.7% (flat YoY / up 150 bps QoQ) in Q2FY25. India’s EBITDA margins improved to 54.8% (up 86 bps YoY) in Q2FY25.
– Profit after Tax stood at Rs. 4,153 crores (up 98.4% YoY / down 12.0% QoQ) in Q2FY25, missing market expectations of Rs. 4,389.6 crores.
– Net Debt to EBITDA (annualized) stood at 2.50x as on 30 September, 2024 compared to 2.63x in Q2FY24.
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Bharti Airtel posted strong results in Q2FY25, with an improving ARPU of Rs. 233, the highest in the industry. This reflects the positive absorption of recent tariff hikes, robust smartphone data customer additions, and an improved customer mix. The India business continued its healthy growth trajectory, driven by a sustained focus on premiumizing the portfolio with quality customers. However, the tariff hikes did impact subscriber numbers, leading to a 0.7% QoQ reduction in Airtel’s customer base, which stood at 407 million in Q2FY25. This decline was notably less severe than market leader Jio’s loss of 10.9 million subscribers during the same period. Looking ahead, the company plans to invest in its digital business, diversifying its portfolio to drive long-term growth. Key areas to monitor will include progress on 5G adoption, capital expenditure trajectory, trends in prepaid-to-postpaid conversions, and traction in home broadband. Operating margins are expected to improve slightly, added by the ongoing transition from 2G to 4G and the ramp-up of its Fixed Wireless Access business across 30 cities. Overall, Bharti Airtel is well-positioned for sustained growth in the coming quarters.