Speaking to ET Now, Mayuresh Joshi, Head Equity, Marketsmith India lauded the telecom major’s performance, calling it “a great set of numbers that Bharti Airtel has reported on all accounts.” He highlighted that revenue growth has been “very decent,” with India mobile revenue jumping 13% year-on-year, supported by higher realizations and an expanding customer base.
“The margins were very good. In fact, the India margins came at 60%. The overall margins came at 57.4 which was higher than consensus. Net debt to EBITDA on an annualized basis is now at 1.63 times, far lesser than last year’s 2.5 times,” Joshi noted. He added that ARPU came in at Rs 256, in line with expectations, while customer additions “have been very decent in the quarter gone by.”
Joshi also pointed out that beyond mobile services, Airtel’s home broadband segment witnessed “very significant growth,” further strengthening the company’s performance. “These numbers are super in this environment and therefore great set of numbers,” he summed up.
On Airtel’s announcement of its intention to acquire an additional 5% stake in Indus Towers, Joshi viewed the move as a strategic step. “They are heading on to the digital infrastructure. In the last one year they have added more than 12,500 new towers and rolled out more than 44,000 km of fibre,” he said. “It is a consolidation both in terms of the digital infrastructure capabilities that they probably want to add. It gives them the boost from the Indus Tower acquisition — a step in the right direction to boost their overall digital infrastructure.”
Discussing the recent Supreme Court order and its potential implications for the telecom sector, Joshi said some relief for Vodafone Idea regarding AGR dues could also benefit others. “If there is some element of relief for Vodafone, some incremental relief can also be expected for Airtel. To a certain extent if that probably happens, Indus also gets its fair share of relief being directly or indirectly associated with that. So, it all depends on the central government stance now,” he remarked.On Airtel Africa’s performance, Joshi said the business has also delivered strongly. “The kind of numbers that the Africa business has reported have been very decent. The customer base stands around 17.5 crore, and as they increase their digital footprint in Africa, there will be more efficiencies that can also kick in from the African business,” he observed.With strong domestic performance, improving leverage metrics, and a focused push toward digital infrastructure expansion, Bharti Airtel appears well-positioned for sustained growth both in India and international markets.