Telecom operator Vodafone Idea reported a net loss of Rs 6,985.9 crore for the December quarter, narrowing 12.56 percent from Rs 7,990 crore in the year-ago period.
Revenue came in at Rs 10,673.1 crore, up 0.49 percent from Rs 10,621 crore in the third quarter of the previous financial year.
EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) of the company improved 140 bps to 40.8 percent in the quarter compared to 39.4 percent in the previous year.
Blended average revenue per user (ARPU) improved to Rs 145 in the quarter compared to Rs 135 in the previous year. Total data subscribers increased to 13.74 crore from 13.53 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
According to the company’s regulatory filing, the total gross debt as of December 2023 came at Rs 2,14,960 crore which includes deferred spectrum payment obligations of Rs 1,38,240 crore, AGR liability of Rs 69,020 crore due to the government, bank and financial institution debt of Rs 6,050 crore and optionally convertible debentures of Rs 1,660 crore. The net debt came at Rs 2,14,640 crore.
Ahead of the telecom operator’s earnings result, Emkay Global, a domestic brokerage, said, “We expect subscriber loss to pick up again for Vi in Q3 — loss of 3 million vs. 1.6 million loss in Q2FY24. In Q2, Vi participated in a government scheme that brought in a significant number of new subscribers, including 4G subscribers.”
As competition in the telecom space intensifies, Kotak Institutional Equities said it expects Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio to gain market share at Vi’s expense, especially among premium subscribers, as a result of Vi’s cash constraints, long-delayed fund-raise and uncertainty about the 5G launch.
According to a series of brokerages, Vi’s ARPU was set to increase marginally. Emkay pegged the increase by around 0.6 percent on a sequential basis to Rs 143, as a result of increased prices of entry-level plans.
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