Vodafone Idea shares rally 8% as Q1 losses narrow; ARPU beats estimates, subscribers decline slows

Despite the day’s uptick, Vodafone Idea remains under pressure — down 21 percent so far in 2025 and having shed nearly 60 percent over the past year.

Vodafone Idea shares rallied as much as 8.5 percent to Rs 6.68 in the morning on Monday, August 18, percent as investors took heart from the telco’s June quarter performance, where losses narrowed sequentially. The upbeat tone in the broader market also added to the momentum.

At about 10:15 am, the stock was trading at Rs 6.62, higher by 7.7 percent from the last close on the  NSE. Despite the day’s uptick, Vodafone Idea remains under pressure — down 21 percent so far in 2025 and having shed nearly 60 percent over the past year.

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The company reported its Q1FY26 numbers after market hours on August 14. Net loss came in at Rs 6,608 crore, wider than the Rs 6,432 crore loss a year ago but an improvement from Rs 7,166 crore reported in the March quarter. Revenue from operations stood at Rs 11,022 crore, up 5 percent year-on-year but flat sequentially. Average revenue per user (ARPU), a key operating metric, improved to Rs 177 against analyst expectations of Rs 167, aided by subscriber upgrades and a better customer mix.

Motilal Oswal Financial Services noted that losses were narrower than its estimate of Rs 7,500 crore, helped by lower interest costs, while revenue trends were broadly in line. The brokerage also highlighted that subscriber erosion slowed during the quarter — Vodafone Idea’s user base slipped by just 0.5 million to 197.7 million, a sharp improvement from the 1.6 million decline seen in Q4FY25 and better than its forecast of a 1.2 million drop.

Global brokerage UBS retained a Neutral stance on the stock with a target price of Rs 8.5, calling the June quarter performance broadly in line with expectations. It flagged a 0.6 percent quarter-on-quarter improvement in ARPU to Rs 165, stable revenues, and a 1 percent dip in EBITDA, with margins contracting 47 basis points to 41.8 percent.

The brokerage also pointed out that the net loss was larger than anticipated, driven by higher interest charges, while capex moderated to Rs 2,440 crore in Q1 from Rs 4,230 crore in Q4 and Rs 3,210 crore in Q3.

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