Shares of Bharti Airtel soared 5 percent on February 7, buoyed by the company's stellar performance in the December quarter. The telecom operator's net profit skyrocketed 505 percent, to Rs 14,781 crore in Q3, driven by a one-time exceptional gain due to the consolidation of a majority stake in Indus Towers.
The telecom company enjoyed a one-time gain of Rs 7,546 crore during the reporting quarter which helped it surpass the Street's estimated net profit of Rs 5,039 crore.
Meanwhile, revenue in the quarter also grew 19 percent on year to Rs 45,129 crore, also coming well ahead of the expected Rs 43,874 crore. Not just that, the company's average revenue per user (ARPU), a key metric for telecom operators, also increased to Rs 245 in Q3 as against Rs 208 in the same quarter last fiscal.
At 10.46 am, shares of Bharti Airtel were trading at Rs 1,697.40 on the NSE, slightly off its day's high of Rs 1,707.55. Also, with gains in today's session, the stock has come at a kissing distance of its all-time high of Rs 1,779.
Meanwhile, the uptick in the stock was also accompanied by heavy trading volumes. As much as 80 lakh shares of the company changed hands on the exchanges thus far, already higher than the one-month daily traded average of 49 lakh shares.
Follow our market blog to catch all the live action
Brokerages had a mixed yet positive outlook on Bharti Airtel after its Q3 results. Morgan Stanley maintained an ‘equal-weight’ call with a target of Rs 1,650, The brokerage noted that Bharti Airtel's net debt narrowed by almost $1 billion QoQ, reflecting the company's strong free cash flow (FCF) generation.
HSBC also reiterated its ‘buy’ call with a target price of Rs 1,940 per share, citing intact growth levers such as rising mobile ARPU, expanding home broadband subscribers, increasing FCF, and dividend growth.
Along similar lines, CLSA held on to its 'outperform’ rating on the stock with a Rs 1,860 target price, highlighting the company's robust consolidated FCF after leases and capex.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
Find the best of Al News in one place, specially curated for you every weekend.
Stay on top of the latest tech trends and biggest startup news.
