Bahrain's leading telecom services operator Batelco has announced a 12% growth in its net profit attributable to equity holders of the company for Q2 which soared to BD20 million ($53.1 million) from BD17.8 million ($47.2 million) last year mainly driven by revenues from international operations. 

 

Announcing the results for the three-month period ended June 30, the revenue rose marginally to hit BD99.2 million ($263.1 million) from BD98.4 million ($261 million) in Q2. 

 

The operating profit too increased by 4% to BD24.7 million ($65.5 million) from BD23.8 million ($63.1 million) last year, while ebitda stood at BD42.9 million ($113.8 million) in Q2, up 3% compared to BD41.7 million ($110.6 million) last year.

 

For the first six months of the year, Batelco said its profit attributable to equity holders rose to BD37.9 million ($100.5 million) from BD37.5 million ($99.5 million) in 2021. Earnings per share (EPS) stood at 22.9 fils for the period compared to an EPS of 22.7 for H1 2021. 

 

According to Batelco, the total comprehensive income for H1 attributable to equity holders of the company plunged 46% from BD47.2 million ($125.2 million) last year to BD25.7 million ($68.2 million), mainly due to foreign exchange translation differences and investment fair value changes.

 

The total revenue for the H1 period of BD197.7 million ($524.4 million), stated Batelco, was in line with the last year's figure of BD198.2 million ($525.7 million). Operating profits decreased by 5% from BD49.3 million ($130.8 million) to BD46.8 million ($124.1 million) due to increases in operating expenses.

 

The Bahrain telco giant pointed out that similarly, ebitda fell 2% from BD85.4 million ($226.5 million) in H1 2021 to BD83.5 million ($221.5 million) this year. The company maintained a healthy ebitda margin of 42% in H1 2022.

 

Batelco said its balance sheet remained strong with total equity hitting BD485.6 million ($1.28 billion) as of June 30, 1% lower than BD489.6 million ($1.3 billion) reported as of December 31, 2021. 

 

The total company assets stood at BD1.02 billion ($2.72 billion) as of June 30, which is in line with total assets of BD1.03 billion ($2.7 million) as of December 31,2021. Similarly, net assets stand at BD528.1 million ($1.4 billion) as of 30 June are in line with BD530.7 million ($1.47 billion) reported as of 31 December 2021.

 

The Bahraini telecom operator's cash and bank balances stand at a substantial BD226.2 million ($600 million), which reflects the 2021 final dividend of 16.5 fils per share paid in April 2022.  

 

Impressed with the results, the board of directors has approved an interim cash dividend of 13.5 fils per share (13.5% of paid-up capital) to the shareholders for the six-month period. This is in line with the 2021 interim dividend payment and the board's commitment to continuously deliver strong returns to shareholders.

 

Lauding the Batelco team, Chairman Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said: "The board is pleased with the company’s performance for Q2 which shows improvement over the same period of last year. This is reflected by 12% increase in net profits and increased EPS of 12.1 fils compared to 10.8 fils for Q2 2021."

 

"Delivering good returns on shareholder investment is a priority for our board of directors and we are focussed on driving an ambitious long-term strategy aimed at meeting the expectations of all stakeholders, stated Shaikh Abdulla.

 

"Stemming from a commitment to support the Kingdom’s digital transformation vision, Batelco continues to be focussed on its digital growth strategy. The board was proud to witness the success of Elevate, Batelco’s first of its kind technology forum for the Enterprise sector, which showcased the Company’s digital brands Beyon Cyber, Beyon Connect and Beyon Solutions," he said.

 

The forum brought together hundreds of leaders from Bahrain’s business community and featured presentations and informative sessions led by experts from the Beyon teams and industry leaders including AWS," he added.

 

CEO Mikkel Vinter said Batelco has accelerated the momentum set in the first quarter to accomplish a number of significant achievements during Q2, keeping digital transformation foremost in mind and delivering on our commitment to the board.

 

During the quarter Batelco focussed on developing and diversifying its digital products and services across its core business, and introduced Cloud ERP and Retail Management Solutions, to help the enterprise sector manage their operations and costs efficiently and maximise revenues," he noted.

 

"For consumers, a major new Home Broadband campaign, with the biggest raffle in the Company’s history, has begun. It’s a very exciting opportunity open to existing and new customers, which will see a lucky customer win a luxury property in Diyar Al Muharraq early in 2023," added Vinter.-TradeArabia News Service