Airtel Q4 Results: Profit nearly triples to Rs 2,008 crore; ARPU at Rs 178

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Bharti Airtel nearly tripled its consolidated net profit for the fiscal fourth quarter, driven by the sharp tariff hikes taken last November, which helped boost average revenue per user (ARPU) and one-time gains.

India's second-largest telco posted consolidated net profit of Rs 2008 crore in the March quarter from Rs 759 crore a year earlier, helped by the strong operating performance of its India mobile business. This is Airtel’s sixth successive quarter in the black after six straight losses earlier.

Strong India mobile revenue growth was driven by the sharp prepaid tariff hikes taken last November, which propelled Airtel's average revenue per user (ARPU) growth at India’s second-largest telco.

“Our consolidated revenues for the quarter grew by 5.5% and EBITDA margins expanded to 50.8%, underscoring our focus on all-round delivery. The mobile business revenues were up 9.5% as we saw the full flow-through of tariff increase. Airtel continues to have the highest ARPU at Rs 178,” said Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO, India & South Asia.

He added that the company’s strong balance sheet and cash flows have enabled it to further repay some of its spectrum liabilities ahead of schedule and improve its leverage.

Sunil Mittal-led Airtel’s ARPU, a key performance metric for telcos, grew to Rs 178 from Rs 163 in the December quarter. Consolidated revenue, in turn, grew 23.3% from the year-earlier to Rs 31,500 crore.