Bharti Airtel shares gained over 2 per cent in the morning trade on Wednesday after the company reported better-than-estimated operating profit figures for the first quarter ended June 30, 2015. The result was announced after market hours on Tuesday.
At 10.55 am, the share price of the country’s largest telecom operator in terms of subscribers was trading around 2 per cent higher at Rs 421.80. It opened at Rs 427 and has touched a high and low of Rs 427.60 and Rs 420.50, in trade so far.
However, the scrip closed 0.77 per cent higher at Rs 416.90.
Telecom major Bharti Airtel posted about 40 per cent jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,554.3 crore for the first quarter ended June 30, 2015-16 on account of sale of mobile tower assets and boom in data usage. The company earned Rs 1,108.50 crore in the same quarter a year ago.
The company’s EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) increased by 6.4 per cent to Rs 8,261.70 crore in the first quarter of the ongoing financial year 2015-16 against Rs 7766.90 crore in the same quarter a year ago. EBITDA margin improved to 34.9 per cent in Q1 June 2015, from 33.8 per cent in Q1 June 2014.
According to Goldman Sachs, April-June EBITDA at Rs 8,250 crore was higher than estimates.
Also, Citi says company remains best placed to counter Reliance Jio’s LTE network due to superior spectrum portfolio, willingness to invest and good execution
(With inputs from Reuters)